


Harry Potter & the Wizards of Waverly Place book 3: Tears of the Dragon

by Gandalfs_Beard



Series: Harry Potter & the Wizards of Waverly Place [3]
Category: Criminal Minds, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Wizards of Waverly Place
Genre: Alchemy, Blood Magic, Cover Art, Demonology, Demons, Dragons, F/F, F/M, Fictional Religion & Theology, Gangsters, Gnosticism, Human Sacrifice, Illustrations, Monks, Multi, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Nazis, Occult, Photoshop, Sex Magic, Supernatural Elements, Thule Society, found art
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-20
Updated: 2014-10-20
Packaged: 2018-02-09 17:27:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 38
Words: 32,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1991511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gandalfs_Beard/pseuds/Gandalfs_Beard
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Deatheaters, Nazis, Demon Smackdowns, and Hong Kong Triads! Occult murders in America lead our three young wizards on a globe spanning adventure: </p><p>"Outside the mirrored glass window, Agent Hotchner watched the last interview being conducted. They were getting the same story from both girls. They appeared devoted to the boy they called Harry. He sighed. It looked like Harry Potter was their only hope for any information, and he was telling crackpot stories about being a wizard." </p><p>Rated M (PG-13/R in some chapters) for sex, violence, some language.</p><p>Multi-crossover and Occult Easter Eggs galore.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> It might be a good idea to read the first two books in the series first as there is a lot of foreshadowing, but you can probably muddle along just fine without doing so. If you like what you're reading, you can always read the first two later.
> 
>  
> 
> _The fictionalised cosmology presented in the story presumes that all deities/demons, and pantheons (Greek, Norse, Hindu, Taoist, Babylonian, "Abrahamic"... etc) are "real" and equivalent. The religious views of the characters are their own, but the author may or may not share some of them. ;-)_
> 
>  
> 
> _For those readers who enjoy books like the Percy Jackson series, or those who follow neopaganism, that disclaimer may be enough. But for those who are not used to the idea of all gods--including those deities most popular today--being placed on the same level, let me add the following:_
> 
>  
> 
> _This story features a somewhat irreverent look at religion (and politics) at times, similar to that which one might find in Monty Python films. Yet there is also a serious undercurrent, and the deeper questions raised given some measure of respect._
> 
>  
> 
>  _In my view, everyone is entitled to believe in who or what they wish, or nothing at all--as long as they do not impose their religious or non-religious beliefs on others through the political process or violence._
> 
> All characters, places, business establishments, secret societies, publications, historical persons etc are fictional, even the ones which are nearly indistinguishable from their real world counterparts.
> 
> I should point out that I had specific actors in mind for two of the original characters which I have introduced to the story.  
> Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa as Zhang Bai Ze [Yes, I know Cary is Japanese. But he is such an awesome gangster it had to be him]  
> Michael Fassbender as Wolfgang Hess
> 
> As per the first two installments, I have given this story an M rating though it is written suitably for teens. It's mostly PG-13 to R rated material  
> The M is for sexual themes, violence, and moderate use of language.
> 
>  
> 
> _I do not own Harry Potter or Wizards of Waverly Place or any of their associated properties, nor do I make any money from the production of this work_
> 
>  
> 
> _All images are photoshopped collages or manipulations, from images found online. Only the collages belong to me, the originals belong to whomever, I do not make any money from the production or manipulation of the images_

**Harry Potter & the Wizards of Waverly Place: Tears of the Dragon**

**Part 1**

**Magical Muggles**

**Chapter 1**

Justin Russo had to admit that he was kind of jealous. Oh sure, he was the current president of Wizard World USA (recently renamed to avoid confusion with the rest of the wizarding world), but Justin wished that he could have been the one to graduate from Hogwarts with full honours. It was perhaps the most prestigious Academy of Magic on the planet. Justin was also forced to admit that he had never thought that his sister would graduate from anything. Though he was jealous, he was also extremely proud of Alex.

Kids at Wiz-Tech all dreamed of transferring to Hogwarts, but that was a rare thing indeed as Hogwarts didn't have an official foreign student exchange programme (something which Minerva McGonagall the new Headmistress of Hogwarts was seeking to rectify for the future).

The only reason Justin's sister Alex had got to go was because Harry Potter was her boyfriend and Hermione Granger was her girlfriend. And they had both returned to England with Alex who had refused to stay in the US when Harry and Hermione had finished their disastrous holiday in New York. Though at that time, there had been no plans for returning to school for any of them.

Alex's dad had been furious that Alex was refusing to return to Tribeca Prep to finish her last year at High School, and Justin had backed up his father at first.

"Alex, what are you thinking?" Justin had asked. "You can't just ditch the whole last year of High School. What will you do if...?"

"...I don't win the Wizard Competition!? Are you serious Justin? You and Dad need to deal with the fact that there is NO Wizard Competition anymore. I'm going to have all of my magic--which Crumbs claims is the most powerful of my generation..." Even Alex had rolled her own eyes and thrown her arms up when she had said that. She still had a hard time accepting that she was as powerful as the Professor and Headmaster of Wiz-Tech had claimed.

"Even if I wasn't going to England to be with Harry and Hermione, it's still more important than ever that I focus on magical training. I don't care about normal high school anymore. I don't need it now that I'm a full wizard and except for art it just bores me to death Justin. But I do need to train my powers, and there aren't any better teachers than I can think of besides Harry and Hermione..." Alex had then batted her eyelashes at Justin and grinned, "...except for _you_ of course."

Justin had sighed and realised that Alex was right. And it wasn't her fluttering eyelashes which had won him over--that only worked on Dad. It was the fact that Alex had even thought to include Justin in the same league as Hermione Granger which had finally won him over.

Justin had noticed that Alex had been much nicer and more focused since Harry and Hermione had been around the week they had been in New York. So Justin had turned around and made Alex's case to their father for her and Jerry had finally relented. Jerry had resigned himself to the fact that his daughter probably wasn't going to graduate from anywhere.

So the whole Russo family had been shocked when they got the news that Alex was going to Hogwarts. Harry and Hermione had decided to finish out their last year of school because they had missed it entirely while fighting in the British Wizard War, and they were taking Alex with them. Justin couldn't have been prouder of her when she had said that the Headmistress of Hogwarts had accepted her as a foreign exchange student.

Of course, everyone had been even more surprised when Max had received an acceptance letter for admission to Hogwarts as a 6th year exchange student too. They didn't know that Ginny Weasley had begged her father--the British Minister of Magic--to talk Professor McGonagall around to letting Max into Hogwarts when Ginny went back for a redo of 6th year. By that time, Jerry had been so thrilled that his daughter was going to continue pursuing her education, that he had been all too happy to allow Max to go as well.

Two kids in Hogwarts, he had thought gleefully, and the third was the current president of Wizard World USA. Jerry was going to have bragging rights for decades to come. His wife Teresa had been equally excited for her children. It had taken her years, but she had really come to appreciate magic. It was her daughter who had first brought her around ironically enough.

Teresa had seen how much hard work Alex was putting into getting back into the Wizard Competition, and she had been extremely proud when Alex had saved Justin and the rest of Wizard World USA from Gorog and his "Angels of Darkness." Teresa had come to realise that there was indeed a balance to things, and that magic could be very beneficial at times.

Of course the case for magic had finally been settled for Teresa when her husband's powers had returned after the explosion of the Wizard World's old power plant. With his powers back, Jerry had become much more confident, and much less befuddled. Not to mention the other things that he could do in bed now. Teresa had had no idea how many good uses there were for magic.


	2. Chapter 2

Alex was extremely anxious. She had taken the NEWT level tests with the 7th years at Hogwarts, and she was certain that she had failed everything. Report Cards were arriving that day and Alex was about to discover if she was actually going to graduate from Hogwarts.

Hermione burst into #12's kitchen clutching the report cards which an owl had just dropped through the letter slot.

"They're here," Hermione yelled excitedly, "They're here Alex. Where's Harry?"

"Upstairs I think. Oh my God--oh my God! let me see... _NO_ \--I can't look, you look Hermione. _Please!?_ I'm sure I failed everything," Alex anxiously moaned.

Hermione had been going to find Harry first, but she could see that Alex was starting to hyperventilate.

"I'm sure you did fine Alex. You did very well following the Hogwarts syllabus--which is amazing considering that you were only there for 7th year," Hermione assured her as she tore open Alex's envelope.

Hermione looked at the report, then she beamed at Alex and gave her a huge hug.

"You've passed everything Alex. And not only that, you got an Outstanding in all of your NEWT level courses, and two Exceeds Expectations to round things out. You're brilliant."

Alex squealed with delight and returned Hermione's hug with a crushing one of her own. She bounced up and down as she squeezed Hermione, almost deafening her when she yelled.

 ** _"I PASSED..._** Oh my God... I can't believe I passed! This is amazing... Justin's never going to believe this." Alex's face was shining as she jumped for joy. Now Alex was starting to hyperventilate from excitement. "I'm going to graduate from Hogwarts. _**WOO HOO!"**_

"Not only that, " said Hermione, "But you're graduating with honours Alex. 8 O's out of 10 at NEWT exams is _incredible._ The majority of students graduate with four or less. You need at least 6 O's in NEWT level courses to be in Honours, and you've done it and more."

Alex was astounded. What she didn't realise was that she was easily as smart as Justin. She just hadn't been inspired by normal subjects to put much effort into learning them. And she'd put even less into magical studies because she was a Natural and could do a lot of good magic without much effort at all.

But when inspired to do hard work Alex had always proved more than capable. And she had just proved how capable she could be, without even knowing how she had done so.

"Oi. what's all the racket in here?" asked Harry standing in the kitchen doorway. Alex flung herself at Harry nearly bowling him over.

"I graduated Hogwarts. _**I GRADUATED HOGWARTS!**_ I passed everything..." Alex squealed as she started giggling and squeezing Harry tightly. "I can't believe it. My Dad won't believe it... _Especially Justin_ won't believe it. This is so fantastic... I love you Harry--I love you Hermione. I couldn't have done this without you guys."

Alex's emotions were so overwhelming, that she began to cry. She really had never imagined herself graduating from anything, even if she had been going to win the Wizard Competition (and she knew she would have won, because she had already won it once, the first time she came across the Stone of Dreams). She kissed a very bemused Harry wetly (from the tears on her face), and then she grabbed Hermione and kissed her too.

"Thank you... Thank you so much," Alex blubbered happily. "I love you guys! You are SO awesome!"

After a short while Alex began to calm down and the others opened their own report cards. Hermione had 12 Outstandings of course. Harry had 9 Outstandings and one Exceeds Expectations.

It was remarkable really. Harry had no idea how Hermione had managed to keep things up while taking way more NEWT level courses than necessary for Honours (which he himself had managed to attain because he had taken 9 NEWT level courses and achieved O's in 8 of them), and tutoring both him and Alex--not to mention her tutoring other students on Sundays. She was brilliant thought Harry.

Of course Harry had been under his own pressures. As the new DADA Professor, he'd had no time for a regular class schedule, and he'd had to be tutored on his 7th year subjects by Hermione, as had Alex to make up for her spotty education. Not to mention that Minerva McGonagall had thought it unseemly for a Professor to be taking classes with the other students.

**~o0o~**

Several hours later, the Triune of young wizard graduates had cleaned up after a bit of celebratory sex and were prepared for an evening in fancy London muggle restaurants and nightclubs. Harry had never imagined having so much money at his disposal (thanks to his Godfather's will), so he splurged for a big night on the town. He didn't care how many Daily Prophet paparazzi stalked them secretly. If they wanted another headline about him snogging two young women at once, they could have it.


	3. Chapter 3

A graduation ceremony for 7th years always came at the end of June, and the three wizards were waiting on platform 9 & 3/4 for the Hogwarts Express. The train was more than half empty as only 7th year graduates and their families were boarding it, so it was much easier than usual to find an unoccupied compartment.

Alex dozed off comfortably against Harry's chest while Hermione was reading another book on Demonology. That reminded Harry of Ron, who had gone mental the previous autumn and had been sent to St Mungo's. He hadn't heard from Ron since, and he hadn't spoken to any Weasleys at length in the last six weeks for any updates.

"So, how do you think Ron might be doing Hermione... Have you spoken to Ginny recently?"

"What? Oh... sorry Harry!" Hermione put her book down. "Actually, I spoke to Arthur last week. he sent me an owl and asked me for a consultation on some of the British Wizarding Laws which he's been updating. In fact, he asked me to bring you in for a consult too. He told me Ron's doing much better in Ireland with his cousins since St Mungo's let him out."

"Good... that's good then. And Derek?" Harry asked. "Is he still with Ron?"

"No," Hermione responded. "He had to break it off with Ron because the Healers at St Mungo's didn't think Ron was capable of sustaining a long distance relationship without losing it again. But Derek has been doing much better since he was allowed to be resorted into Hufflepuff before the end of the term. That was brilliant on your part by the way. How did you convince the Hat?"

"I got the idea from Alex actually... I threatened to throw him in the lake!" Harry grinned, remembering the conversation. "He was jolly cooperative after that."

Hermione burst out laughing.

"That's brilliant Harry... but what about the future?"

"Oh, the Sorting Hat won't be making any more snap judgments any time soon. He's been trying to put people who don't belong into Slytherin forever. Probably because he thinks that House needs a few decent people in it. But we've come to an arrangement and both Minerva and Arthur have agreed to it. From now on, all sortings are going to be reevaluated after one month--with the oversight of the Headmistress and the House Masters. Nobody's going to be tossed into Slytherin without a fair evaluation ever again. If Slytherin is made up of mostly nasty people, so be it."

"And I can't tell you how much of a relief that is Hermione. Every year at sorting, I'd always feel bad for half of the kids getting sorted into Slytherin. It just seemed unfair; remember how I told you the Hat almost put me in Slytherin!? I had to beg it not to. The kids from Slytherin households really didn't stand a chance, even if they didn't agree with their parents. I remember Sirius telling me what a hard time that stupid Hat gave him."

Hermione teared slightly, but they were happy tears.

"That's beautiful Harry. We're really doing it, sorting out the old rubbish of our wizard world. You, Arthur, Minerva, you're all ushering in a new era. Dumbledore... your parents, Sirius, and Lupin would be so proud of who you've become." Hermione gazed into Harry's eyes, falling into their green depths. She leaned across the compartment's little table in between the two seat rows and kissed Harry. An electrostatic charge crackled in the room and the light dimmed slightly.

"And you too Hermione. Don't leave yourself out," Harry said, returning Hermione's kisses. Alex stirred awake and grinned.

"Oh, are we making out again? Close the curtain Harry."

Harry smiled and followed Alex's instructions. He cast a muffliato spell and a locking spell on the door of the compartment. It wouldn't do to have fellow graduates and their families stumbling in on them...

**~o0o~**

When the train arrived at Hogwarts it was after dark. Harry, Hermione, and Alex did their best to make themselves look semi-respectable. In the end, their robes covered all rumpled clothes. And there wouldn't be too much to fuss about tonight anyway. The only thing on the agenda was a feast, followed by casual mingling, music and dancing. The formal graduation ceremony was going to be held in the morning on the same spot where Dumbledore's funeral had been held.


	4. Chapter 4

Other students and their families quartered in the student dormitories overnight. But Harry was also Professor Potter, and he had his own private quarters where he, Hermione, and Alex had spent the night. After breakfast, students and their families made their way to the graduation pavilion which had been erected.

It was just as boring as any muggle graduation ceremony, and dreadfully anticlimactic. It just couldn't compare to the actual excitement they had felt when they had received their report cards.

After the ceremony, people were taking drinks under the pavilion and milling about. Luna and her father were there chatting with Neville and his grandmother. Xenophilius caught Harry's eye, and he looked stricken. Xeno hadn't seen Harry since the day he had tried to sell Harry out to the Death Eaters in exchange for his daughter. He looked so awful that Harry felt terrible himself. Xenophilius had been his biggest defender until Luna had been kidnapped by Death Eaters. Harry understood completely what he had been going through.

Harry gave Luna a quick hug.

"I think I need a word with your father... Okay Luna?"

"Oh, alright then Harry. I'm sure you've got a lot of catching up to do," she said, smiling serenely before wondering off to look for some blibbering humdingers. She had been searching for a nest on the Hogwarts grounds for months.

"Mr Lovegood... Xenophilius, just a quick word please," Harry asked. Xenophilius was mortified.

"Oh... erm... Okay! I suppose..." he mumbled in embarrassment.

"I just wanted to say that its alright. I know you were only trying to save Luna. Really, I understand, and I'd like us to be on good terms again," said Harry. "Really... I mean it."

Tears welled in Xeno's eyes.

"Thank you... thank you very much Mr Potter... I'm so sorry, I truly am..."

"Harry... call me Harry!"

"Er... very well... Harry. Thank you so much for looking out for my daughter when you rescued her... Thank you for everything really. The Wizarding World would be a sorry place without you." Xeno held out his hand and shook Harry's profusely.

"Is it true?" Xeno asked, "Are the American girl and Miss Granger really both your girlfriends?"

Harry was amused by the question and nodded. Most people didn't bother to ask anymore, they just presumed it. Though of course, numerous Daily Prophet headlines may have had something to do with that. But it was the truth. And now that they had all graduated, Harry didn't give a fig who knew.

But there was one thing which Harry and his girlfriends had never told anyone about. Though Professor McGonagall had spotted it their first night back at Hogwarts last autumn. So Harry was stunned into speechlessness when Xeno spoke again.

"So you're this century's Triune then? That's quite a responsibility you know. But I can see that you're all up for it."

"You... _How did you know?"_ blurted out Harry, with a stupefied expression plastered on his face.

"Any real wizard with a foot in the muggles' occult underground would be able to sense it. It's only because most wizards ignore muggle occultism that they wouldn't know a Triune from a Threesome," replied Xenophilius with a half-smile.

Harry smirked. that was more or less what Minerva had implied at the beginning of 7th year.

"So do you know a bit about muggle occultism then?" Harry asked.

"Oh but of course!" Xeno exclaimed. "It's my business to seek out all that is Hidden. If you and your partners would care to join me in a drink I can tell you everything I know about Triunes and their place in the Wizarding World..."

"You know, it really is amazing how little attention wizards pay to the other types of magic in the world," Xeno continued. "Stupid really. Muggles have a lot of resources, and access to certain forms of magic that many wizards know nothing about. Much of their technology wouldn't exist without the magic of electricity."

Harry beckoned Hermione and Alex so that they could be part of the conversation. It did concern them directly after all. They sat with Xeno at a table under a willow tree which was swaying in the breeze coming off the lake. Small clouds scudded across the blue sky and the sun glittered on the ripples of the water.

Hermione boggled when Xenophilius had repeated what he'd told Harry so far. She reached into her bottomless bag, pulled out several books on alchemy, occultism, and demonology and plonked them on the table.

"I've been thinking about the same thing a lot recently, Mr Lovegood," Hermione said eagerly. "These books I've been reading are very explicit regarding the relationship of alchemy to muggle 'magic' and demonology."

"Well there's not a lot more that I can tell you that you won't find in those books. but I can tell you some things about Triunes that those books may not spell out for you. For one thing, Triunes are a common icon in muggle religious lore. And muggle religious lore, mythology, philosophy, and scientific occultism all share a common purpose and origin."

"You must be beginning to gather a good understanding of the relationship between alchemy, occultism, and demonology if you've been reading those awhile Miss Granger."

Hermione nodded attentively and Xeno continued.

"Good! The meaning and purpose of Triunes is not very clear in major muggle religions--but we should remember, that even all muggle religions are a form of magical practice. The practitioners of the world's major religions will often pretend that's not true, but it's just a fact."

"Occultism and Alchemy are both related to religion, but are more empirical, much more exacting in defining and describing the powers of magic in the universe. The Triune in Christian iconography is associated with what is also called the Trinity--Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. And who are these three Deities set up against? None other than a powerful Demon..."

"Of course, it's all starting making sense Mr Lovegood. I can see it now," Hermione said excitedly, eyes gleaming at the understanding which was dawning on her.

"But don't be too quick to make the same associations that Christianity and many other major muggle religions make regarding Triunes Miss Granger," Xenophilius responded. "They are mostly wrong. What most muggles consider to be Deities are actually in the same class of being as Demons: Interdimensional Entities with vast reserves of power and the ability to violate the laws of physics and literally Create matter and energy out of nothing."

"Triunes are human Wizards. They always have been. They are one of the few means that humanity has to counter Demons and other powerfully magical forces which threaten to destabilise the balance of things. Which is why some "Light" Demons are considered evil, because if they had their way they would destroy all Darkness and upset the delicate balance of the magical forces which maintain our multiverse."

Hermione was becoming more and more impressed with the depth of Xenophilius's knowledge of muggle culture and scientific terminology. To the Wizarding community, that alone would have made other Wizards think he was a nutter. Xeno continued,

"It is in the Secret Schools--also known as the Mystery Schools of the ancient philosophies and religions--which you will find the more exacting scientific approach to the workings of magic. It is those schools and their modern successors which are collectively known as the Occult--which simply means 'Hidden'--and it is there where the science of alchemy and the forces of wizardry meet."

Hermione must have restrained herself very well from laughing when Xenophilius mentioned science, thought Harry. He knew that she thought Xeno was a woolly headed thinker with outlandish ideas. But in actuality, Hermione was rapt in awe of the knowledge that Mr Lovegood seemed to possess about this subject. And after Xeno had been proved right about the existence of the Deathly Hallows, she was more than keen to give him a hearing.

"If what you're saying is true," Hermione began, "and if I'm not mistaken, then Wizard Triunes are a way to counter demonic beings, because only Triunes can generate enough magical power to also Create energy and matter from nothing, and to violate Gamp's Laws as well. "

"Correct Miss Granger. You may have noticed something else about being a Triune though--your type of Triune in particular expresses its greatest power through... er... ah... life affirming rituals..."

"Do you mean Sex Magic Mr Lovegood?" Hermione asked bluntly. Alex chortled as she bit into a juicy red apple. Harry just looked off into the distance and pretended he hadn't heard.

Xenophilius squirmed and flushed. He had tried to avoid being direct in Hermione and Alex's presence, because he found the topic rather embarrassing to discuss openly, especially in front of young women his daughter's age. But Hermione wasn't shy when it came to expressing knowledge in clear language, even if it did sometimes make others uncomfortable. Which was something Xeno rather thought Hermione had very much in common with his daughter, Luna.


	5. Chapter 5

They were back at #12 Grimmauld Place and Hermione was taking Harry to see the Minister of Magic for a consultation. And Alex was going along for the ride, because there was no question that they were all inseparable now.

When they arrived at the Ministry, they were given special passes which allowed them access to the Department of Mysteries where Arthur was buried up to his neck with a radical upsurge of the influx of confiscated Magical Artifacts found in muggle possession. Just that morning, Aurors had brought in an old Applewood wardrobe with ornate carvings of a lion on it along with some rings with green and yellow gems from a cottage in Kent. The wardrobe was emanating the sorts of power gradients associated with interdimensional portals, and so were the rings.

"Alright, _YES,_ that's an issue..." Arthur was saying to some wizards who worked in the Department of Mysteries, "But this needs a proper examination despite the potential risks. There have been far too many incursions by interdimensional entities into our world lately. Muggles and wizards alike are both vulnerable. We need to know what we're up against, and these items seem to be portable portals of some sort..."

Arthur stopped because he saw Hermione approaching with Harry and Alex in tow.

"Right, well you know what to do. Carry on!" Arthur said to the wizards wheeling the wardrobe around on a cart. Then he turned to greet Hermione and the others.

"Oh, you're here, good. Sorry you had to find me all the way down here. Very busy morning. Shall we go to my office then?"

Five minutes later, they were all seated in comfy armchairs in the Minister's office.

"Right then. I had originally called you in because I need your input on the legislation I am proposing. But something more important is happening which needs to be dealt with. Harry, I need you and your partners to take on employment with the Ministry as official Aurors..."

Harry was about to interject, but Arthur put his hand up.

"Please hear me out Harry before you decide. The main reason I need you is because I need somebody I can implicitly trust on this particular job. And that's you three. I'm still suspicious that a number of people in the Ministry's employ are holdouts from Voldemort's regime. So I can't rely on them for something this important. There is too much temptation for those who harbour dark agendas in this case."

"Also, this first job is in New York, and Miss Russo's brother, the president of Wizard World USA has specifically requested you all," Arthur finished.

"I was about to say that we'd take the jobs anyway Arthur." Harry smiled at Arthur who looked momentarily sheepish.

"Oh... er... right. Excellent, thank you Harry. And just to be clear, your...erm... team, will strictly be Special Assignment. Professor McGonagall is unwilling to let the best professor of the DADA in the last 50 years just up and leave for a job as an Auror--congratulations on graduating with honours by the way, and to you as well Hermione and Miss Russo. Anyway, Special Assignments cases are relatively infrequent, so you should be able to manage both jobs."

"Good. I never expected to be a professor," Harry said. "Being an Auror was all that I'd ever wanted to do--still do really--but I've found that I really enjoy teaching too; preparing other young people for what's out there. It's worthwhile."

**~o0o~**

The brooding man with short unkempt black hair was going through a file marked urgent. The call had come in an hour ago, and he was going over the details of the police report which had been faxed to him. The NYPD had another case in Staten Island almost identical to the one that his FBI team had been called to last year in Brooklyn Heights.

The 7 pointed Star painted in the blood of the victims, the bodies: two adults, two children, all with their hearts removed. Plenty of evidence everywhere... and no leads.

The FBI agent considered the report carefully, his face souring. This could be a potential disaster in the making. Perhaps a new death-cult on the rise. The 7 pointed star was not commonly used in the United States. Whoever it was never bothered to clean up or anything, now, or last year. Despite the exacting nature of the rituals, these people didn't seem to care whether they left any evidence of their identities. That was worrisome. There were bloody fingerprints everywhere, and none of them had received any hits in the database. And none of them matched the prints from last year either. That was what concerned him the most.

The agent leaned back in his chair, looking even more grim, if that was possible. He called out through the door into the next room where he could see two members of his team talking.

"Hey, Morgan, Reid, we're going to New York. Round up the team; wheels are in the air in 45 minutes."

"Sure thing Hotch," Agent Morgan responded.

**~o0o~**

President Justin Russo had been in the middle of a meeting with the League of Concerned Ogres--LOCO for short--when he got the call. It was from his father.

"Hey, Dad, I'm kind of busy right now. I'm in a meeting..." Justin said. But his dad pressed on.

"Is it more important than another mass killing almost exactly like the one committed by those British wizards last year?"

No it wasn't. So Justin had concluded the rest of the meeting with the disgruntled officials from LOCO. He knew exactly who to call. He picked up his wand and dialed the direct line to Britain's Minister of Magic.


	6. Chapter 6

It was late in the evening, the crime scene had been cleaned up, and except for some yellow tape and a single police unit outside, the home looked deserted. Agent Hotchner approached the uniformed officer and identified himself and his team. Agent Hotchner was accompanied by Agents Morgan, Rossi, and Jareau.

When they approached the front door Morgan thought he heard something inside the house. He whispered to Agent Hotchner.

"I'm gonna go around the back to cover you; there's someone in there."

"Okay, but take Rossi with you," Hotchner replied.

Hotch and Jareau silently slipped through the front door, guns drawn. They heard voices coming from the living room and stealthily crept closer. He could just nearly make out what they were saying, but it didn't make much sense.

"I can feel it. Like when Dumbledore took me to Voldemort's cave. I can actually feel the dark magic... it's left some sort of imprint..."

Agent Hotchner stepped into the living room and Jareau quickly followed. Hotchner made the opening gambit.

 **"Freeze, FBI!** Don't move! Drop your weapons now!"

**~o0o~**

Harry had arrived in New York half an hour earlier with Hermione and Alex via the International Floo Network. Alex had consulted her Wizard GPS for the address which they had been given by Minister Weasley. She had located the residence in Staten Island quickly, and they had apparated to the home. They had been in the house for about 10 minutes, and Hermione had cast several spells for revealing traces of dark magic with little success.

"It's okay Hermione," said Harry, "Never mind the spells... it's weird. I can feel it. Like when Dumbledore did when he took me to Voldemort's cave. I can actually feel the dark magic... it's left some sort of imprint..."

They were taken completely by surprise when someone yelled,

 **"Freeze, FBI!** Don't move! Drop your weapons now!"

Harry cursed silently. He hadn't thought that any more police would be entering the house this late at night after the crime scene had been cleaned up. He had his wand out. But very inconveniently the three young wizards had four guns trained on them.

Harry thought quickly. He had seen enough American cop shows when the Dursley's had been out to know that the police in America would just as soon shoot you dead first and sort things out later. He also knew that in the time it took them to apparate or fire off a spell, a bullet could easily hit one of them. He decided the risk was too great.

"I said drop your weapons, _NOW!_ Don't force me to shoot," said the lead FBI agent forcefully. Even though the agent wasn't a wizard, the man was intimidating thought Harry.

"Do it," whispered Harry to Hermione and Alex, "Drop your wands, they think they're weapons." Which in truth, they were.

The three young wizards let their wands clatter to the floor.


	7. Chapter 7

Harry stared across the table at the man with the shaved head. He was almost as intimidating as Agent Hotchner, and he reminded Harry a bit of Kingsley Shacklebolt, right down to his no-nonsense manner. But, feeling slightly intimidated or not, Harry was a wizard, and without a weapon being trained on him, he wasn't about to let anyone push him around. He wondered if any other Aurors ever ran into this sort of trouble, then he remembered that British police didn't run around with guns and shoot people at the drop of a hat, so it was very unlikely that they had.

Harry would have just apparated, but he had been separated from Alex and Hermione at the police station, and he didn't know where they were. And he wasn't about to ditch anyone.

The agent stared coldly back at him, saying absolutely nothing. Harry knew it was an intimidation tactic, and said nothing either. Let the other man make the opening move. Finally, when it was clear that Harry wasn't going to volunteer any information, that is precisely what the agent did.

"Who are you? We know that you and your friends didn't kill those people. What we want to know is why you were there. And if you had any role in these murders at all."

Harry just kept staring at Agent Morgan.

"We can do this the easy way or the hard way."

Harry had to struggle not to roll his eyes. That had to be the oldest cop cliche in the book. Morgan continued, with a menacing edge to his voice.

"We've got your _girlfriends_ in separate interrogation rooms. One of them will crack soon enough, but you can save us a lot of trouble if you just help us out."

The agent's veiled threats against Hermione and Alex infuriated Harry, and he couldn't help himself.

"If anyone harms them..."

"WHAT? What'll you do?" the bristling FBI agent said with a raised voice, "Look around you man. You're not going anywhere anytime soon unless you start talking to us."

"We didn't kill them, isn't that enough for you?" Harry responded.

Apparently the staring match was over and they were into the next stage of the interrogation. Harry knew the FBI man was just doing his job. But that didn't stop him from disliking Agent Morgan intensely at the moment. Like most wizards--even a fair few dark wizards--Harry had developed an aversion to outright physical violence. Magic was usually easily reversed. But physical injury still required as much healing as one might expect in the muggle world, even though the methods were quite different.

So even the implied violence set Harry on edge, and if Harry had had his wand, Agent Morgan would have found himself temporarily nearly paralysed by a full body bind spell.

But Morgan changed his tactics, seeing that he was just making the English kid angry, and even more unlikely to talk. He spoke in a more measured and sympathetic tone.

"No it's not enough for us. I already told you what we need to know. Why don't you just give it up, and maybe we can help each other. I already told you, we know you didn't kill those people."

Harry sighed and relaxed a bit.

"You wouldn't even believe me if I told you," he said.

"Try me," retorted Agent Morgan.

"Alright then. I'm Special Assignments agent for a... a British secret agency. I... I really can't say any more than that."

"Which one? You don't have any credentials on you. You don't even have any ID. But your two girlfriends Hermione Granger and Alex Russo do."

Which was true. Harry hadn't lived like a muggle since he was 11, and had never had a real identity card--unlike Alex and Hermione who both still had feet in the muggle world. Harry groaned. This could be really bad.

"Look," continued the agent, "We know you're not British agents of any kind. You're just kids. If I didn't know better after seeing Miss Russo's ID, I would have thought she was only 13 or 14. And she's an American."

"How did you know they were both my girlfriends?" Harry asked. That had puzzled him since the agent had first referred to Hermione and Alex like that.

The question threw Morgan. He hadn't expected that. Behind the mirrored glass, agents Hotchner and Rossi were watching. They glanced at each other in surprise. They hadn't expected that either. After a moment Agent Morgan collected himself.

"I didn't. It was a figure of speech."

Harry groaned again. Of course. he should have realised. It was another typical police intimidation tactic to refer to one's companions as sexual partners--usually resorted to only by really macho cops to belittle their suspects. 

"So they really _are_ both your girlfriends then?" Morgan questioned with a disbelieving expression.

"Yes," Harry replied. But the agent's manner rubbed Harry the wrong way again. "Is that an interrogatory question, or just a personal one?" Harry asked

"Let's just say it's both."

"I don't see how it's relevant. Three people were murdered and we didn't do it..."

"Stop it. Just stop... We _know_ you didn't commit the murders yourselves, but you have to know that we can't let the three of you go without checking your stories out. You seem like a really smart kid. Come on. Help us out." Pleaded Morgan.

Harry considered the options. Apparating randomly around a police department full of trigger happy American cops while looking for Hermione and Alex and their wands didn't seem like a very good plan. He could try casting a spell without his wand. But without it, most spells would be diffuse and there was no guarantee that they would be effective enough.

Then he thought a bit more. Maybe they could help each other. Harry and Hermione had been discussing what the consult with Arthur was about. Hermione had told him that Arthur was introducing legislation to loosen the restrictions regarding secrecy. It was supposed to make it easier for wizards to interact with muggle authorities when dark wizards like Voldemort and the Death Eaters went on muggle killing sprees. Arthur hoped that eventually, the statute of secrecy could be done away with altogether, but that seemed like too much too soon and he had wanted Harry and Hermione's opinions on the matter.

Well, thought Harry, now is as good a time as any.

"Okay, I'll tell you. But you're going to think this is even crazier than my secret agent story. Just bear with me alright. If you give me a chance, I can prove what I'm about to tell you."

"Okay, spit it out then."

"In a way, I am a sort of agent, but not from the British government. I'm a Wizard, and I'm an Auror, which is a bit like your job except we catch Dark Wizards, and I work for the Ministry of Magic in Britain."

 **"Bullshit!"** Morgan swore, looking infuriated. "I've _had_ it with you kid..."


	8. Chapter 8

The door to the interrogation room opened and Agent Rossi stepped inside.

"Morgan, let me try."

"He's all yours," Morgan responded in disgust.

Harry immediately liked Agent Rossi. He didn't know why. He just did. The man just sat quietly down. Then he spoke with a gentle voice.

"You were right. That did sound crazier than your first story. But you also said you could prove it. What did you mean by that?"

"If you let me have my wand, I can show you."

"Your wand? Would that be one of the sticks? You know, we thought they were guns. You could have been killed. What were you thinking?"

"I was thinking about casting some spells to reveal some clues about who murdered those people. The persons who murdered the other people last year are both dead. Their names were Alecto and Amycus Carrow."

Now they were getting somewhere thought Rossi. He'd just keep playing along for now, he was getting much more out of this boy than Morgan. It had been a clear mistake to send him in first.

"Okay. Can you tell us your name?"

"It's Harry. My name is Harry Potter."

For some reason the name rang a bell somewhere in the back of Agent Rossi's mind. But he couldn't put his finger on it. He became perplexed. Then he remembered that some luggage with Harry Potter's name on it had been found in the top floor of the Plaza Hotel after the explosion last year. The FBI had investigated that too as being possibly connected to the Brooklyn Heights murders.

"You're still alive..." Agent Rossi blurted out. "When we found your luggage last year at the Plaza we eventually decided you must have died in the explosion, even though we couldn't find your body."

"Yeah," said Harry, "That was me... and my girlfriends, though Alex wasn't one yet." Harry couldn't help feeling a bit smug. "We would have been killed, but we left before the Carrows and their two henchman blew it up."

"Henchmen? This is first time you've mentioned them."

"That's because they were just a couple of thugs who had it in for me and Hermione. They were never a serious threat. We handled them easily enough in London when they tried to capture me and Hermione there a couple of years ago."

"It's the Carrows who were the most dangerous. They were a couple of really sick, twisted psychopaths. They would torture and kill anybody who would get in their way, and even people who weren't in their way--just for the fun of it. It's because of me that they both ended up in Azkaban, a prison for wizards, and they've had it in for me ever since."

Harry thought about telling Rossi everything, about Voldemort and the British Wizard War, but he decided against it. Too much information too soon he thought.

"Okay. Let's just say I'm considering what you're telling me. But you have to realise that it sounds like nonsense, a fairy tale."

"I agree," said Harry simply, "but I can prove it if you let me have my wand back."


	9. Chapter 9

Alex and Hermione had been separated from Harry and they weren't happy. Alex had been taken into one room by a very pretty blonde female agent who didn't look much older than them, and Hermione was in another room with a young agent who had floppy hair and a limp.

Agent Jareau looked appraisingly at the sulky girl with black hair who was slouching across the table with her head in her hands, then she gave the girl a disarming smile.

"If you'd like, we could call your parents for you."

 _"Nooo..._ don't do that. Please!" Alex moaned. "I don't want them to see me in here. Can't I just have a lawyer?" she whined. "I know my rights."

"You're not actually under arrest Alex..." began Agent Jareau.

"Then you can let us go right!? Please, we didn't do anything," Alex interrupted

"You were found trespassing on a crime scene. You're not under arrest--yet. But we can hold you for up to 36 hours while we investigate your story."

 _"UGH!_ That _sucks!_ I just wanna go home," Alex whined.

"Let me call your parents..." Agent Jareau offered again.

"No, I meant _home,_ in England with Harry and Hermione. That's where my home is now. Please... just let me see them. I promise, if Harry says I can tell you stuff I will. But I won't until he does."

"Are they your relatives?"

Alex hesitated before answering, but then she figured why not.

"They're my boyfriend and my girlfriend and we live in London together. But that's all I can tell you unless Harry says I can tell you more."

Agent Jareau did a doubletake. It was very unusual at the beginning of the 21st century to find people who were interested in such a relationship outside of the music industry--where male rappers and heavy metal artists could frequently be seen cavorting with multiple women. But Alex didn't seem like a groupie at all, nor did Hermione Granger. And the boy--young man really--who Alex had called Harry certainly didn't appear to be a pop star.

**~o0o~**

Agent Spencer Reid took to Hermione quickly. He could tell from her demeanor that she was somewhat of an intellectual, and had likely recently graduated from a prestigious prep school. Probably on a scholarship, he mused. She didn't strike him as coming from a wealthy background, just a comfortable middle class one. And he was very curious to find out what her field of study was. If he drew her out, Perhaps she would be inclined to talk to him.

"What school did you just graduate from? An elite academy or prep school in England?" he asked with a bit of eagerness.

Hermione looked at Agent Reid with surprise. Then she realised that he was very clever. Probably much cleverer than anybody in the building. But it was an unusual question for a police interview.

"Hogwarts. It's in Scotland," Hermione answered bluntly. She didn't see any reason not to tell him that much. It wasn't like he'd ever be able to find the place.

"I don't think I've heard of that one, and I know every major prep school and academy in the UK."

"Er... it's a very small one," Hermione lied.

Agent Reid could tell that she was lying. In fact anybody could. Hermione had never been any good at it. But she seemed so sweet that he knew she had a very good reason.

"Oh, Okay. Can you tell me what you studied?" Reid inquired politely.

Hermione pondered the question. She couldn't really tell him the truth even though she wanted to-not without talking to Harry. But that option didn't seem open to her just now.

"Law, I'm studying to be a solicitor..."

Reid could tell that she was still hiding something. But the answer had a ring of truth.

"Then you probably know that you were trespassing on a crime scene then." Reid said.

"Yes. But we had a good reason to. I just can't tell you until I discuss it with Harry first. If he agrees, we'll all tell you everything you want to know."

Outside the mirrored glass window, Agent Hotchner watched the last interview being conducted. They were getting the same story from both girls. They appeared devoted to the boy they called Harry. He sighed. It looked like Harry Potter was their only hope for any information, and he was telling crackpot stories about being a wizard.


	10. Chapter 10

Agent Rossi tapped Hotchner on the shoulder.

"Hotch, listen to me. Go and get that 'wand' that the boy was holding. If he has it, I think he'll tell us everything we want to know."

"Alright, _fine."_ Agent Hotchner said with a trace of annoyance. "But don't encourage him too much. I'd like to get some real information. Not this fantasy story he's concocted."

"I've almost got him Hotch. I guarantee that once he's got his wand he will talk to us."

Agent Hotchner had a uniformed officer collect Harry's wand from the evidence bag. It hadn't been checked in yet, so it was readily available. Hotch handed it to Rossi with a slight glare.

"Hotch, _trust_ me." Rossi said assuringly. "This will work. He's not just spinning a story. He really believes what he's telling me even though it's crazy. If he has his wand he'll feel confident enough to talk to us."

Agent Hotchner didn't say anything or change his stony faced features. Agent Rossi sighed. Hotchner really needed to loosen up. Profiling was a "think-outside-of-the-box" business. And right now Hotchner was very much stuck inside his own box.

Harry felt relieved to hold his wand again. He considered hexing the agents and just getting the hell out of there. But there was the fact that they knew exactly who Hermione and Alex were, and would track their families down if they had to. And Harry was opposed on principle to obliviation. It seemed like such a violation of personhood. It had overwhelmed him that Hermione had trusted Harry so much that she had done that to her parents to protect them while she helped him hunt for Voldemort's Horcruxes. It had been a huge sacrifice. He gave a small sigh and tried to think of a spell with spectacular effects.

He kicked himself. His Patronus, of course, that ought to do it.

"Okay," Harry began, "I don't want anyone to get alarmed. I promise, what I'm about to do isn't dangerous at all, but if you haven't seen magic like this before, it might be a bit shocking--and I don't want anyone to get scared and shoot me alright."

Agent Hotchner rolled his eyes. This was ridiculous he thought. But he kept his eyes glued to the one way mirror to see what kind of crap this teenager was going to pull next.

"Expecto Patronum!" Harry said loudly.

There was a blaze of white light, and a brilliantly glowing white stag burst out of the wand and galloped around the interrogation room. Agent Rossi fell backwards out of his chair with an expression of utter shock and disbelief on his face.

Agent Hotchner couldn't believe it either. He refused to. It was a trick of some sort. It had to be. He burst into the interrogation room and found himself face to face with the stag before it slowly faded into nothingness.

Hotchner had to sit down. All of a sudden his knees were wobbly. He needed some coffee. Rossi looked none the worse for wear though. He looked positively thrilled. Agent Morgan stood in the doorway looking perplexed, angry, and more than a bit frightened. Agent Morgan didn't scare easily, and that was what made him so angry. He felt like slugging the kid. That couldn't have been real. He stalked into the room.

"Okay, **wiseass.** What was that? Some kind of hologram?" Morgan said angrily.

"What's a hologram?" Harry asked, bewildered.

Morgan made a threatening move towards Harry. The kid was mocking him. Hotchner grabbed Morgan's arm.

"Enough!" Hotchner said authoritatively. "Morgan, go and wait outside until you cool down. That was no hologram. Send JJ and Spence in though. They'll want to see this."

Once Agents Jareau and Reid arrived, Harry gave everyone another look at his patronus. Everybody was suitably awed--except for Morgan who was still pissed off for having been scared like that.

"Right then. I take it you all believe me now!" Harry stated.

The agents looked at each other, not quite sure what to do next. Obviously the kid had something interesting going on, but they didn't know what to believe. Harry decided to put the pressure on.

"You know, now that I've got my wand, I could just hex the lot of you and leave. But that wouldn't be right. I'm more or less in the law enforcement business myself now, and I'm happy to tell you whatever you want to know. But I should tell you, the longer I and my girlfriends are locked up here, the further away the wizards who committed the murders are getting-and I have no idea who they are yet."

Agent Hotchner had to do something, but he didn't like just trusting people. Though after what Harry had just pulled off--proving that he was a wizard indeed--Hotchner decided to give Harry and his girlfriends the benefit of the doubt.

"JJ, can you go and bring the two girls please?" Hotchner asked Agent Jareau. "I think we're ready to finish the interview all together and let these kids go on their way.

She complied, and a few minutes later JJ returned with Alex and Hermione. Hermione glanced awkwardly around the interview room at all the agents. But Alex ignored them and pounced on Harry almost knocking him out of his chair.

 _"Harry!"_ squealed Alex, squeezing him in a big hug with a huge grin on her face, "I missed you so much. Can we leave now?"

"Not just yet," Harry replied. "We're going to bring these agents up to speed on wizards and what we're up to before we leave, and maybe even help each other out. We're all after the same people, whoever they are."

"Fine," pouted Alex. "But let's hurry up, I'm tired, I'm hungry, and I'm hor..." Then Alex remembered that she was in a room full of FBI agents, and didn't finish her sentence.

Alex blushed and flashed a smile at everyone. Then she plonked herself on Harry's lap and put an arm around his shoulders. Harry looked bemused, and Hermione couldn't help giggling. Alex's behaviour always made her laugh, even when she was feeling down.

"I'm not leaving here until we're ready to go," Alex said, glowering at everyone, as if daring them to try and pry her off Harry.


	11. Chapter 11

The interview went on for another two and a half hours. Agent Hotchner sent out for some pizzas because the kids did look tired and hungry. Agent Morgan had calmed down a lot and joined the rest of them. Harry began to like him a bit more as Morgan warmed up to everybody. Morgan was alright once he liked you, Harry thought. Harry supposed that maybe every team needed a heavy. But for some reason Harry had never felt the need for one, no matter who else was on his team. He'd rather have Neville or Luna on his team than some macho jerk.

When they finished the interview it was after 3:30 in the morning and the wizards were exhausted.

"I'm _SO_ tired..." Alex complained, "That was worse than being locked up and interrogated by Professor Crumbs' stupid fake agents when he tricked me into revealing wizardry to the world--asshole, I still haven't forgiven him for that one. I should have known Crumbs' agents were bogus. They were just as lame as most of the grown up wizards here. The real FBI dudes are _WAY_ scarier."

"Let's just find a hotel and get some sleep," Harry said. "It's too late now to do anything else anyway."

Hermione agreed, on the condition that Harry wasn't going to check them into another 5 star Hotel. They found a Motel 6 on Staten Island and crashed together on the King Sized bed as soon as they got in the door.

They didn't wake up until well after noon. They were still wiped out and felt completely drained. Nobody knows how intense and exhausting a police interrogation can be until they go through one thought Harry. The television didn't adequately convey the sheer physicality of the emotional trauma caused by interrogations.

And by that time, the three young wizards decided the whole day was shot. They spent the rest of the afternoon watching stupid shows on the TV and making out. It was actually kind of cozy in the motel room... more intimate than the grandiosity of the Plaza Hotel. It was clean, and being on Staten Island, outside of the most built up parts of New York city, it was fairly quiet as well.

Evening was falling, and the wizards were feeling hungry. But a thought occurred to Hermione.

"Alex, don't you want to stop by and visit your family while we're here in New York? You haven't seen them since Easter."

Alex frowned. She considered it for a moment before responding brightly.

"Um... That would be a nooo..." Alex said in a fake chirpy manner, "I'm fine. There's always next time."

In truth, Alex was anxious about seeing her family again. She had been mortified when her parents and Justin had visited her at Hogwarts at Easter and she had tried to avoid them the entire time. Mom was smothering and Dad was awkward. And Justin. How do you talk to a brother who's the president of Wizard World USA she wondered.

The only family member who really got her right now was Max, and who knew what he and Ginny were up to? Since the end of the school year, they had just been off doing their own thing too, much to the distress of both the Russo and the Weasley parents who had finally met each other at Easter. Alex changed the subject back to the more important issue at hand.

"Hey... guys," she pleaded, "I'm starving. Let's go get some burgers."

**~o0o~**

A rough but not unattractive looking half-drunk man with a week's worth of stubble, and wearing a very Heavy Metal black leather jacket with a frilled silky white shirt, was sitting at the bar in a noisy New York nightclub nursing a beer after having just slammed three shots of tequila.

Despite the oddity of his attire, and his black eyeliner, he wasn't out of place at all in New York city. Nobody knew him here, and that was for the best. He could blend into the muggle throngs--the thought of it gave him shudders--and try to figure out a way to salvage things without hindrance from other wizards.

But he rather hoped that he would run into Harry Potter anyway.

The dark wizard had finally discovered where Alecto and Amycus had died, and surmised who had killed them. He was thoroughly displeased. He had arranged their escape from Azkaban for a purpose, and now that purpose had been defeated. He would have to do it himself from scratch now, and it looked like he'd need new partners. Without Alecto and Amycus, he had nobody to complete a compatible Triad or Quad. And you needed at least 3 wizards to call up Demons.

Or did he? Rodolphus knew of at least one muggle sorcerer who was as dedicated to the dark arts as he was, and of another like himself. But he was on the wrong side of the Atlantic. He needed to get to Switzerland first.

**~o0o~**

Agent Hotchner had taken a gamble. He had wagered on Harry Potter's word, but was it worth another risk to his credibility to verify more of the young wizard's story? Harry had given him a phone number that was allegedly a direct line to the Minister of Magic. (Arthur had recently had Wizard techs redesign the Ministry to accommodate muggle technology--which more and more younger wizards with muggle families were using). Hotchner wasn't sure if he wanted to dig deeper into this world or not. To do so could be to open a Pandora's Box, but he was dedicated to uncovering the truth. And his duty to his country required it.

The agent finally decided to make the call.


	12. Chapter 12

Harry and Alex had finished their bacon cheeseburgers and french fries, and some chicken nuggets which they had all shared. Hermione was still working on her fries. They were sitting on a bench in a nice park with a beautiful view of the darkening Atlantic as evening fell. A chill breeze came up off the ocean.

Alex was feeling cold, but she had forgotten to bring a coat. She glanced around quickly to make sure nobody was looking and waved her wand. She didn't have to say the Cashmerus Appearus spell out loud any more--a beautiful light blue cashmere sweater appeared on her, perfectly fitted.

She grinned at Harry who was wearing a motheaten sweatshirt. And his hair was a complete disaster. He needed another makeover Alex mused, trying hard not to laugh at him. Alex put her hand to her mouth so that Harry wouldn't see as a giggle escaped. Then she managed to pull herself together and ask the most important question.

"So what's next?" Alex asked. "Could you tell anything from the magic you sensed Harry?"

"Not enough really. I could just feel that it was dark magic, and I know I could recognise the feeling if I felt it again. But that's about it. It didn't really give me a clue as to who or what we're after. If Alecto were alive I would think this was her work. But she's dead, and all I can think about are other Death Eaters. But I thought the rest were all still in prison."

"Not all ob theb Harry," said Hermione with a mouthful of french fries before hurriedly swallowing them. "They never did find Rodolphus."

Harry swore.

"Fuck! That's bollocksed! Lestrange... Bellatrix's husband. That's not good. It's got to be him then doesn't it!?" Harry said. "He probably helped the Carrows and the other two escape from Azkaban. Now they're dead..."

"...and he's probably been trying to find them since last year," continued Hermione.

"Then that means the ritual murders he committed must have been for a spell to find out where Alecto and Amycus disappeared from doesn't it?" Alex asked, looking anxious. "What if they figure out where my family lives? Those two creeps died in our Lair."

"Well your parents' shop is still unplottable, and we would have heard something by now if Rodolphus had discovered where your family lives," Hermione replied. "I expect that the spell he used was to detect the deaths of specific persons. Once he knew that they had died somewhere in the vicinity that was probably all he needed to know."

"And if his old partners are dead, then he'll be looking for some more, won't he!?" Alex said. The tone of her voice indicated that the question was rhetorical. But Harry responded anyway.

"Yes," Harry said. "He will. But who will he be looking for? And where will he go? We need to get ahead of him. What's he planning...?"

"Demons," said Alex without hesitation. "It's all about Demons isn't it!?" Again, her tone suggested a rhetorical question. She continued passionately.

"Everything that's happened has brought us together for a reason. That's why Hermione, and McGonagall and Mr Lovegood all said we're a Triune. We're meant to be together because we're the only wizards that can fight Demons right now. We have the power to save people. These Death Eater dudes... if any wizards would try to get Demon powers, it's them. And it's up to us. We're the only ones who can stop them," she concluded with a plea in her voice. Harry had never loved Alex more than he did at that moment.

"I agree Alex," said Hermione soberly. "It's the most logical inference. I think Rodolphus had formed a Triad with Bellatrix and Alecto some time in the past and they had been trying to ensnare a demon. After Bellatrix was killed and Alecto was put in Azkaban, Rodolphus would have been trying to bring Amycus into the Triad. But when they escaped, Alecto was so obsessed with Harry that she came after him instead."

"So Rodolphus has been trying to find out what happened to her since last year then. But now that he knows for certain that they're dead, who does he go to for help conjuring Demons?" Harry wondered aloud.

"That's a good question," Hermione responded. "Maybe those FBI profilers could help."

 _"Excuse me?"_ Harry exclaimed in astonishment. "How can _they_ help?"

"They have computers." Alex said simply, before Hermione had a chance to respond.

"Alex is right Harry," said Hermione. "The FBI will have access to an international database of known occult groups and individuals suspected of ritual murders. It's a possibility that a name could come up which we could link to Rodolphus."

"But who would that be? How would a wizard end up on a muggle database?" Harry was extremely perplexed and annoyed. He didn't see how this could be any more effective than random guesswork.

"We won't know unless we try..." said Alex, glowering at Harry. Harry decided that Alex was right.

"Yeah, er... well, I suppose we ought to tell Agent Hotchner who we think is behind this anyway in the morning," said Harry a bit sheepishly.

"Idiot," Alex chuckled and shoved Harry playfully.

Hermione looked at Harry a bit smugly. He thought she looked rather proud of Alex. Harry grinned wickedly at them both.

"Ganging up on me already are you?" he teased."Thought you two would at least wait until after our second anniversary."

"Only because we should be in bed already," said Alex, sticking out her tongue at Harry and tickling him.

"I quite agree," Hermione said with a straight face. "It's well after dark. We should get back to the motel and get some rest." Then her facade cracked a bit and a smirk peeked through.


	13. Chapter 13

The next morning, Agent Garcia had been even more thrilled than Agent Rossi to see three wizards performing patronuses and a few transfigurations--a cell phone into a mongoose for example (that one was Alex's).

"Oh my God, Oh my God!" Garcia squeaked, appearing to be about to hyperventilate, "You're _real..._ I mean you're real Wizards. Oh my gosh! This is so awesome." the chubby agent gasped gleefully. Like JJ, she didn't look much more than a few years older than the young wizards themselves. Garcia reminded Alex a lot of her best friend Harper and Alex took to her right from the the start, as did the other two young wizards.

Agent Hotchner almost cracked a smile--if you could call a slightly less dour look a smile. Still, there was a hint of mirth in his eyes. Garcia's antics nearly always amused him--when they weren't annoying him.

"Thank you Agent Potter!" Agent Hotchner said gratefully. And this time he really did smile, albeit a bit stiffly. "You've already been a lot of help. Your Minister has provided us the British Ministry of Magic's database of dark wizards-magically. For now, only Garcia has access to it though. Until our government has been thoroughly debriefed and formal ties with the wizard communities are established my team can only coordinate with you unofficially."

"No problem Agent Hotchner!" said Harry shaking the FBI agent's hand and returning the smile. "Hopefully this pays off for both of us... for all of us."

In no time at all, Agent Garcia's computers were running search programmes in hundreds of databases containing the histories of known dark wizards and muggle occultists, looking for anybody with a relationship to Rodolphus Lestrange. At the same time, programmes were running searches for crimes with similar signatures around the world.

It wasn't long before a name and place popped.

"Look," said Hermione, "That name there, pull him up. He must be related to Rudolf Hess. Hess was a wizard who was high up in Hitler's command structure-very big on muggle occultism. He was a member of the Thule Society. Grindelwald is known to have worked directly under him, and the Grindelwalds were close to the Lestranges. This man could be Hess's grandson. If true, then Rodolphus is likely to know him... or perhaps even be related to him. The similarity of Rodolphus's and Rudolf's names might not be coincidence."

"I've never been to Switzerland," Alex said gleefully looking at the computer file on the screen, before quickly pleading. "We're going to Switzerland right?"

Harry smiled.

"Yeah, we're going. We'll leave as soon as we're done here."

**~o0o~**

It had taken Rodolphus a day and a half of muggle transportation to reach Switzerland. The International Floo Network was no place for a Wanted Wizard Criminal. "Criminal." He snorted. He was a Pureblood. The Criminals were the mudbloods who had tainted the Halls of the Ministry with their filth.

Now he was standing outside of an 18th century chalet on a pine-forested mountainside in the middle of the Swiss Alps, very near Grindelwald's birthplace. The chalet had a complex web of protection spells around it. Not bad for a Squib, Roldophus thought.

In any case, the only reason Rodolphus liked his nearly-muggle cousin Wolfgang Gehlen Hess, was because Hess had never let his lack of natural magical ability stand in the way of attaining vast magical powers through other means. The man had access to numerous dark magical artifacts passed down directly to him from his father and his grandfather and their forefathers, and he had used them wisely; becoming extremely proficient in Alchemy, Dark Occultism, and even in the rules of Dark Wizardry--even though he couldn't personally practice that form of magic. Hess was also a high-ranking member of the Thule Society--a position also passed on by his father--which was an underground pureblood society of Aryan dark wizards and the muggle sorcerers born into their families.

Hess was an impressive figure much admired in Aryan Wizarding circles. But in Britain, only the Carrows and the Blacks had appreciated him as much as the Lestranges. The Malfoys were more interested in maintaining their Wizard blood-purity than their Aryan blood-purity, not to mention that they were rather squeamish about Blood Rituals. Voldemort had been a fool for not allowing Wolfgang to join the battle for Britain thought Rodolphus. Blood Rituals were Hess's specialty, but he was more stable than Bellatrix or Alecto had been.

In the end, Wolfgang the Squib may prove more useful than Alecto Carrow, Rodolphus mused. Hess would be more than willing to call up a Demon. Now all Rodolphus needed was to convince Zhang Bai Ze to join them.


	14. Chapter 14

"What do we need _him_ for?" asked Wolfgang. "You don't need three wizards to trap a demon now that you have me."

Rodolphus Lestrange regarded his cousin shrewdly across the mahogany desk. Wolfgang Hess was as imposing in physical stature as he was in reputation. His steely grey hair was slicked back, his jaw set, and he stared back at Rodolphus with gimlet eyes of his own. If Wolfgang said it could be done with less than three wizards, then it must be so. But that wasn't the only reason he needed the wizard Zhang.

"Ravana... I want Ravana," Rodolphus replied. If his cousin was shocked, he didn't show it. In fact Wolfgang was chuckling.

"You don't want just any Rakshasa, you want the King eh? What do you need that much power for? Planning on knocking off a few 'deities?'" Hess asked sarcastically.

"Just Harry Potter..." began Rodolphus.

"Oh yes, yes I see... the 'Chosen One!'" snickered Wolfgang. "Overkill... no?"

"Indeed," Rodolphus smiled thinly at his cousin, "I don't need the King of the Rakshasa to kill Harry Potter. I'll do that myself when the time comes." He paused, then he continued through gritted teeth.

"No! I'm going to take the Ministry, then I'm going to take the Parliament and the Crown and put a wizard back on the Throne of Britain."

Now Wolfgang looked interested. Good, that got his attention thought Rodolphus.

"Ah, _now_ I understand. Only a truly mighty demon can undo the magic which protects the British Crown from wizard rule, because it was a powerful demon which put it in place," Wolfgang nodded, looking less disdainful.

"Deity... It was a deity who created the magic," Rodolphus corrected his cousin. Wolfgang began laughing loudly.

"Tell me cousin, what is the difference between a deity and a demon who both rely on Blood Magic and Soul-Stealing to sustain their power? The demon who placed the protective enchantments on the British Crown is one of _ours._ He is no Light Demon..." Wolfgang snorted, "...not by any stretch of the imagination. The main invocations of his cult are Blood Sacrifice and Ritual Cannibalism."

Rodolphus raised his eyebrows in perplex. This was the first time that he had looked at that particular muggle religion in that light. Not that he'd ever paid it much attention. But he'd ransacked enough muggle churches in his day to get an idea of what it was all about. Peace and love and a bunch of other dreary rot like that. Or so he had thought.

"But what about the demon's son?" Rodolphus asked. Wolfgang was quick to reply.

"Fiction... A story created by muggle believers trying desperately to maintain hope while under the whip of their demon 'god.' They need to believe that their 'god' has something better planned for them after they die or they would go mad."

Understanding dawned on Rodolphus and he smiled evilly. The deity was a bloodthirsty con man, a demon playing a cruel game on his most ardent devotees. A creature surely as malevolent as his rival. Muggles were so stupid he thought... except for his cousin, who even put many pureblood wizards to shame with his brilliance.

"I can see why you want Ravana now," Wolfgang continued. "He is far more powerful than Baal Zebab who was cast into the Fire Realm. Ravana's magic is more than a match for the magic of the demon who put Baal there. Ravana cannibalises other demons and draws his power from their blood as well as the blood of mortals."

"So be warned, these particular demons are among the most powerful entities to ever exert their influence on our realm. An invocation and entrapment gone wrong will be far more disastrous than it would be with a lesser demon. If this goes wrong, the nation you wish to control will be in cinders."

The thought even gave Rodolphus the chills.

"And that is why we need Zhang," Wolfgang concluded. "You are indeed correct cousin. We must find him after all."


	15. Chapter 15

**PART 2**

**Dragon Tears**

**Chapter 15**

At least it was still daylight in Switzerland Harry thought. All of this jumping between timezones through the Floo network was getting to him. It was nearly 5 pm in Bern and evening would be falling soon.

Alex was awed by Bern. It was a beautiful city, almost out of step with history. Most of the buildings were centuries old, and Alex couldn't see a skyscraper anywhere. Hermione had been there once, when she had gone on a skiing holiday with her parents. But it was so different in the summertime.

"Right then," said Harry pointing to his map, "We're here and we want to go there."

Harry shook his head in amazement. He still couldn't believe that the Grindelwald family had a whole Alpine valley in Switzerland and a village therein named for them. According to Hermione, the Grindelwald family stretched back over a thousand years with an unbroken lineage.

"It should only take us one apparition to get us to the area, but then we'll have to try and find Hess's home. It doesn't have a proper address," said Hermione.

Alex was feeling hungry. Breakfast had only been a few hours ago, but that was half a dozen time zones away and she was starting to feel edgy. She glanced at Harry, who was clearly feeling the same way. Hermione looked fine though--the timezone changes didn't seem to phase her.

"Yeah, I'm hungry too Alex," said Harry. "We'll just find somewhere quick and then get on our way."

"This doesn't look like a place with fast food," Alex moaned. "I need a burger."

Hermione laughed.

"As horrifying as it sounds, there's actually a McDonald's a couple of blocks away. I suppose if you're not up for some cultural cuisine we can go there."

McDonald's wasn't exactly Alex's idea of a great burger, but it would do in a pinch. They were in a hurry. The wizards quickly ate their food sitting on a bench by the side of the Aare River watching some ducks playing on the riverbanks. Then they waited a few minutes for their food to go down before apparating to the village of Grindelwald.

If Bern had been picturesque, the Grindelwald region surrounding the village itself and other villages like it was a masterpiece on the walls of the Louvre. The mountain sides surrounding the villages in the high valley of the Grindelwald were covered with pine forests and meadows, and the rocky snowcapped peaks of the Eiger and the Wetterhorn towered majestically above them. The air had a crisp snap to it. The greens were greener and the blues were bluer. But the few clouds in the sky began to turn pink, the mountain shadows crawled towards them, and the wizards knew that evening was falling.

They all looked at the sky and thought the same thing.

Hotel.

They had all had quite enough of nighttime prowling for the time being. Even if it was only noon where they had just come from. Hermione had a chill, and all of a sudden she knew exactly how Alex and Harry felt. The timezone had finally caught up to her... Hermione had an eerie sensation of deja vu that felt a lot like how she'd felt when she had used the time-turners in third year at Hogwarts--the year that she had first realised that she loved Harry.

The three of them walked down the road and around a corner when they spotted a hotel. They all just stopped and looked in astonishment, then they all started laughing until Alex slipped and fell in a puddle. At which they all laughed some more. Even Alex who didn't know a word in German could make out the name of the hotel: Romantik Hotel.

All in all, it ended up being very reasonably priced thought Hermione, who was using a credit card which Harry had linked to his accounts at Gringotts for unexpected occasions like this. It was also a huge relief to Alex and Harry that the Swiss Hotel Staff could speak English better than they could themselves.

The guestrooms were comfortable, not opulent. But they were part of a suite with a separate living room. And the view was spectacular. The shadows of the mountains covered the whole valley now, but the mountain tops glowed brightly pink as the sky became a deep purple. And in the space of a few minutes, the black night sky lit up with stars.

Fortunately, Alex had been taking the habit of making sure that everyone had some fashionable evening wear packed at all times in Hermione's bottomless bag. But Alex didn't have to time to get Harry and Hermione the makeovers they deserved so she did the next best thing.

Alex dragged Hermione and Harry into the shower, scrubbed them down, forced them into evening wear, and did the best she could to fix their hair, finally resorting to using her wand on Harry's. His hair seemed to obey Alex's wand for the time being. Now it just looked casually messy instead of like a bird's nest.

They were ready for the dining room. And Alex finally got a taste of some Swiss culinary delights. Definitely better that McDonald's she thought.

_Bern, Switzerland_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My apologies to McDonald's :P


	16. Chapter 16

It didn't take long to find the Hess family home (or one of them anyway) the next morning in Grindelwald. It hadn't been unplottable, it just wasn't a listed address. So that helped, but it also helped a lot that Harry was getting really good at sensing magical fields and the subtle differences which he detected between different kinds of magic--all completely wandless. He knew exactly which direction to go.

But getting through the protective enchantments surrounding the Hess Estate would be another matter altogether. Not even an American wand would help, Hermione reasoned. This magic had been put in place by someone who knew to account for the variations in magical wavelengths and frequencies different wizards used in other parts of the world.

If they were going to get through this web of spells, Hermione would need to be able to feel them without a wand too so she'd know what they were dealing with Harry figured. He spent half an hour trying to help Hermione just sense the different spells. Meanwhile Alex was staring at a copse of trees in a patch of meadow beyond the gates which was close to the chalet.

"Hey... guys. I've got an idea..." Alex said. The other two looked at Alex attentively. "I think I have a spell that will get me inside the perimeter... will I trigger any other spells if I do?"

"Possibly..." Hermione said thoughtfully. "But most wizards are arrogant and assume that muggles and uninvited guests won't be able to find a way through their protection spells. I doubt Hess will have have sensors all over his property, just here at the border. It's worth a try I think."

"So Hess is definitely a real wizard then?" asked Harry.

"He must be," Hermione replied. "He comes from a long line of pureblood wizards. And no muggle could possibly do this sort of magic..."

"Not even with artifacts?" Alex asked. "If he's from a wizard family, they would have left him tons of magical stuff wouldn't they?"

Alex had an excellent point Hermione thought.

"You're right Alex. I shouldn't be so dismissive. If Mr Lovegood is right, then any muggle with a lot of brains and dedication could learn to use magical artifacts to their best advantage--perhaps even enough to fool most wizards. A lot of the protection spells around the chalet could have been cast with an artifact."

Harry found the very idea of a muggle being able to cast spells with magical artifacts a bit thrilling. He thought he understood now why Ollivander felt the way he did about the powers of wands--even in the wrong hands.

It was something Harry had imagined in his closet reading Dudley's unopened children's books. They were full of maligned and abused muggles who used magical objects like rings and lanterns to better their own lives or seek vengeance.

"So... Am I going or not?" Alex inquired with a hint of irritation. The other two seemed to have lost focus.

"What... oh... er, Yeah. Give it a go Alex," Harry said with a start.

Alex thought back to the spell which she had created to win the wizard competition when she and Justin had gone after the Stone of Dreams the first time. Harry and Hermione looked on with awe as Alex melted into the ground. Inside the estate by the copse of trees, what looked like a gigantic Orchid grew from the ground. The petals opened and Alex's head peeked out from inside. Alex's spell had worked. And no alarms had been tripped.

Harry and Hermione reached into Alex's mind for the spell, and minutes later, they had popped out of the ground in petals of their own. That had felt even weirder than apparating Harry thought. But he marveled at the simple ingenuity of the idea. Harry couldn't believe that Alex had improvised that spell when she was only 16. She really was great at magic. But he took one look at Alex glaring at him; he immediately focused again and took charge.

"Okay... we're inside the estate. I don't want to confront anyone. This is just a reconnaissance mission alright...?" Harry looked at Alex and raised his eyebrows pleadingly. She was a lot like him, and he didn't want her to jump into anything headfirst. Alex rolled her eyes.

"Okay... _fine!_ I _won't_ stun those creeps into oblivion if they get in my way then." Alex concluded by sticking her tongue out at Harry while Hermione tried to muffle her own giggles. She loved Alex so much.

"Sssh... everybody down," Harry whispered with alarm. Someone's coming out of the front door."

It was Rodolphus and Hess, and they looked ready to go on a trip. Harry had to restrain himself as much as he'd had to restrain Alex from just attacking straightaway. He had learned the hard way that attacking first without knowing what you were up against was always a foolhardy move. They needed information if they were going to stop Lestrange eventually. And Hess's empty house seemed like a convenient way to get it.

Once Hess and Rodolphus had got beyond the boundaries of the Hess estate they disapparated, leaving behind some relieved young wizards. Harry was already sensing many kinds of magic. different from that which he was used to feeling, and now he could examine it at his leisure.

"I think you were right Alex," Harry said, "Hess is a muggle... But calling him a Squib wouldn't just be rude, it would be stupid. He knows what he's doing with the magic he's wielding. I can feel it."

Hermione didn't question Harry anymore when he got these sorts of "feelings." Harry was almost always right when he got them.


	17. Chapter 17

"Be careful Harry. Now that they've gone, Hess may have left some other security measures on the house," warned Hermione.

"Not any more," said Alex brightly, holding what looked like a burned out electrical junction box with frayed wires. It was still smouldering. Harry and Hermione looked shocked.

"Oh, come on! You mean you couldn't tell that he only had a normal security system on the house?" Alex said impishly.

"Oh er..."

"We were just about to..."

"Yeah right! You guys are just too slow," Alex chuckled. It was fun when she could actually surprise her partners.

Harry smirked at Alex. Hermione looked a bit embarrassed.

It was also Alex who discovered a hidden camera in Wolfgang Hess's office.

"Why would he have a secret camera in his own study?" Harry wondered aloud.

"He may use it to blackmail people who say too much in his office," Hermione replied.

"Maybe he recorded talking to Hess..." Harry began excitedly.

"No electricity..." Hermione retorted with a hint of annoyance.

"You two really need one of these..." said Alex, grinning as she pulled out her American wand. Hermione grinned back at once. Of course.

"I'm sorry Alex," she said. "I'm so stupid. I completely forgot that your American wand was designed to interact with electrical circuits. And you're right. It's about time Harry and I got some ourselves."

Power to the camera was restored and the desktop computer came online.

Many hours later, the Triune of wizards looked at each other soberly. This was much bigger than they had supposed. The dark wizard and dark muggle sorcerer were planning to use a demon king to break the spell of a deity and take over Britain.

Hermione kept staring at a symbol she could see when Hess held up pictures of the Demon which they were planning on capturing. The symbol looked a bit like a Yin Yang sign, but there were three of the little shapes curled inside of the circle instead of two. And inside each teardrop was a pentagram. Where had she seen it before? Then she remembered. It had been last summer when they had first met Alex.

"Alex, Harry, do you remember when we were in Tibet briefly outside of a monastery? This symbol was on the gate. It's very unusual. I've never seen pentagrams combined with an Eastern Triskelion before. The symbols belong to very different magical systems..."

"When do we leave?" Alex asked with a grin. She knew what Hermione knew because Hermione was so excited that she had broadcast everything into Alex and Harry's brains without meaning to.

"That could actually be a bit of a problem," said Hermione. "The International Floo Network doesn't run to Tibet or Nepal. It only has two ports in continental Asia, one in Mumbai, and one in Hong Kong. And it's not safe to use the Floo Port in India with all of the anti-witch terrorism going on there right now."

"A Floo trip to Hong Kong and a bunch of apparitions to Tibet," groaned Harry. "Great. What bloody time will it be in Hong Kong Hermione? We've been here for hours."

"Erm... about 8 pm Harry," Hermione almost winced when she said it. Harry sighed. Alex looked thrilled.

"Right then," Harry said. "The hell with it! Alex? You up for a night on the town in Hong Kong?"

**~o0o~**

The bass-drops boomed in Alex's ears and her body gyrated in time to the fast Goa beats the DJ was spinning. She and Hermione had dragged Harry onto the dancefloor of a huge Hong Kong nightclub after a few drinks at the bar had loosened him up a bit. They were all dressed to the nines in the trendiest clubbing outfits which Alex had packed into Hermione's bottomless bag, right next to the evening clothes which they had worn to the Swiss hotel's restaurant.

Harry always felt awkward on the dancefloor--even after all of the London outings. But Alex and Hermione didn't mind how he danced--he managed to keep a rhythm, and that was enough for them. Hermione had an arm around his waist and was nuzzling Harry's ear from behind while Alex writhed her slinky lean figure against his front. It started to get very hot and Harry felt more than a bit dizzy, but he was having so much fun, that he stopped worrying about how stupid he looked dancing.

It was nearly 1 am Hong Kong time when they checked into the Kowloon Shangri-La. Hermione didn't even mind that it was a 5-star hotel. She was just too steamy to care about Harry spending too much money. As soon as the door to the suite closed, she and Alex began to tear off Harry's clothes while kissing him and each other passionately... They didn't even make it to the sofa, much less the bed--at least not for another hour or two.


	18. Chapter 18

Rodolphus had never liked muggle transportation, but he had to admit that his cousin Wolfgang's private jet could change his mind. The cabin came with a full bar and a House-Elf bartender dressed in a bar-towel with a swastika on it. The British wizard was really liking the Mexican liquor he had discovered in New York, and was on his fourth shot. This was much better than flying drunk on a broomstick he decided.

He was even enjoying the inflight entertainment. The severely burned dreamwalker was slicing a bloody swath through his teenage victims with the blades on his gloves. Rodolphus was starting to think that maybe there were a few other muggles like his cousin who might be alright.

"Wizard..."

"What?"

"The director of that muggle film is a wizard. There are a lot of wizards in Hollywood," Wolfgang smirked.

Rodolphus began to feel restless halfway through the second film, _The Texas Chainsaw Massacre._ The bloodlust rose in him; he needed a kill. Usually he was totally in control of himself unlike Alecto or Bellatrix had been. Not even the hardest night of binge drinking affected him like these films were doing. It almost felt a bit like a form of the imperio curse, controlling his mood.

The hairs on the back of Rodolphus's neck prickled. The director of this film was a muggle, so it wasn't any form of magic he was used to. This technology was unnerving, and he wondered what sort of effect it would have on someone who was mentally unstable.

**~o0o~**

Zhang Bai Ze waited in the bar of the Kowloon Shangri-la for his guests to arrive at 10:00 am. The Dragon Master of the Black Lotus Triad nodded to his security contingent--a number of very large men with spiky black hair in stylish black suits and black sunglasses--to secure the entire lounge. The guests would be there in 15 minutes. Zhang hoped they would be punctual. He had no use for the unreliable. And if he didn't like what they had to say, he would have them cut down right there in the bar.

Fortunately for Rodolphus and his cousin, they were one minute and 23 seconds early, and Zhang was extremely interested in their proposal.

**~o0o~**

Harry stirred awake before Alex and Hermione did. Alex was snuggled under his right arm, her naked body pressed right against his. Hermione was just to his left, still completely passed out. But Alex began to awaken too. She gave Harry a soft sleepy look. He gazed back into her eyes. He couldn't believe how much he had come to love Alex. She tore as much at his heart as Hermione did, and Harry wondered how he could have been so lucky to find two such beautiful people--both inside and out--to share his life with. Having them with him made up for so many years of pain and loss.

"Hey you," Alex said quietly with an adorable smile, "Did I ever tell you how much I love you Harry?"

"Just about 100 times last night..." Harry chuckled.

"Mmm... I think I should tell you again," Alex retorted.

About half an hour later Hermione awoke to a squeaking bed. She smiled and joined her partners.

**~o0o~**

It was about 9:45 am and the young wizards were ready to make their way to the Tibetan Monastery. As they had been there once, there was no question that they would find it quickly. They didn't notice the gangsters who had secured the ground floor lounge and lobby. Nor did they notice a stunned Rodolphus watching them from bar.

Rodolphus was astounded. Potter, here in Hong Kong at this very moment? How? This couldn't be a coincidence. But he had no idea how they could have possibly discovered his plans and followed him here. Potter and his girlfriends couldn't be allowed to leave the hotel alive.

"Is anything wrong?" asked the Dragon Master with slight disdain when he saw Lestrange's face drop.

"It's... it's Potter," gasped Rodolphus. "He's right there... in the bloody lobby with his girlfriends. I don't fucking believe it. It's impossible. I don't know how he could have found us."

Hess turned to look, and his eyebrows shot up in surprise. His cousin was correct. There Potter stood, just begging to be accosted. Zhang silently cast several spells that would prevent Potter and his young women from leaving the building, and he motioned for his men--all skilled martial artists, and wizards themselves--to surround them and take them. Zhang leered slightly. The young women were beautiful, and wizard girls with their powers harnessed fetched the highest price on the market.

Hermione sensed it first. Something was terribly wrong.

 _ **"Get down!"**_ she shrieked as she shoved Harry and Alex to the ground.

A statue to their right exploded and debris rained down on them. The three wizards had their wands out and began shooting spells back at the dozen men in black suits who were bearing down on them. People in the lobby were screaming and running to avoid the ricocheting spells which were demolishing it. Ming vases shattered, chandeliers rained down, sofas exploded, and glass everywhere turned into flying shards.

Rodolphus made to join the fracas, but Zhang put his hand on Lestrange's arm and shook his head. Rodolphus complied. It wouldn't be a good thing at all to anger the most dangerous Wizard and Gangster in the Orient and the Pacific Rim.

Harry shot a stunner that took out the two mobsters on his right, but he wasn't able to dodge the spinning back kick that caught him in his shoulders and sent him flying into Hermione and Alex. They crashed to the ground in a heap. Alex held her partners tightly as 6 men began to grab for them.

Alex didn't think; she just reacted. Harry and Hermione, without realising what was happening, were drawn into Alex's spell. All of their powers melded and then exploded outwards from them blasting everybody in the lobby off their feet and knocking them all out. It was such a powerful spell that everyone in the hotel was rendered unconscious.

But the men in the lounge were unaffected. Zhang had erected a strong shield spell just in time to prevent the dozen men in the bar from being knocked out. His own craggy features creased slightly in dismay. The children were powerful. Potter and his little girlfriends were staring right at him, Rodolphus, and Hess.

Magic wouldn't do it, thought Zhang sourly. A shame. He had really wanted the little girls alive. Seven of his men pulled uzi's out of their jackets and began spraying bullets through the shield spell and into the lobby--hitting a number of prone muggles and bursts of blood exploded from their bodies spattering the walls and the decor.

It was Alex who managed to collect herself enough to save the young wizards by flashing them all out to a random location before another volley of bullets caught one of them.

_Wolfgang Hess's Bartender House-Elf_


	19. Chapter 19

_**"Fuck!** Bloody Hell!"_ Harry swore, "That was bollocksed!"

Harry's face was bleeding in a number of places from the flying debris. He had a splitting headache and his shoulder felt like it had almost popped out of its socket. Alex and Hermione didn't look in much better condition. There was a gash on Alex's right arm which would have required stitches in a muggle hospital, and Hermione had a black eye from taking a fist to her face. Dust covered them all, and they were bloodied from numerous cuts.

They needed to get off the Hong Kong streets and find a place to heal and recuperate. There was a very rundown hotel nearby that looked as if the staff might overlook the young wizards' appearance. They were right. The desk clerk didn't give them a second look. He handed them the key to a room when Hermione checked them in, speaking flawless Chinese.

Harry couldn't work out when Hermione had managed to find the time to learn all the languages she had used on this adventure--German and French in Switzerland, and now Chinese. He began to wonder if she was using magic, and vowed to ask her at a more appropriate time. The three disheveled young wizards made their way up several flights of rickety stairs and caught sickly sweet whiffs of opium as they staggered down a dimly lit corridor.

A very thin man was sitting cross-legged and leaning against the wall just outside an open door through which could be seen a screaming baby and a wailing woman. The man had needle tracks on his arms and he stared off into space. Alex and Hermione were horrified at the misery and suffering surrounding them, and tears began trickling down Alex's cheeks. Harry clenched his jaw and bit his lip in an attempt to stop from being overwhelmed himself. Quickly, they made their way to the grimy room which Hermione had rented.

Fortunately, Hermione and Harry had both taken a Newt level Healing Class. Hermione used the same spell which Snape had used on Draco's wounds in 6th year to close the gash on Alex's bloody arm. Like muggle stitches, the spell closed gashes to prevent bleeding out and infections, but it didn't actually heal the wound itself. It would take almost as much time to heal completely for a wizard as it would for a muggle.

Soon, all of their wounds were sanitised and closed, and pain potions swallowed. Hermione's puffy black eye looked a bit better, but not much. They all wanted out of this miserable little hotel and out of Hong Kong. But they wouldn't be going anywhere for a while. They couldn't apparate in the condition they were in without risking further injury or splinching.

Harry had very nearly been concussed, and they were all extremely shaky. Every time there was a bang in the street, they all jumped. Now that the adrenaline had stopped pumping they realised how terrified they had been by all of the flying bullets. In just seconds, hundreds of rounds from seven guns had been fired at them and they had only barely escaped with their lives.

"We need to get to Tibet Hermione, preferably today. But I don't know how," Harry groaned. "I wish we had our brooms. Hermione, next time we try to get ourselves murdered by gangsters, we really should pack our brooms in your bottomless bag."

"I know this is horrid Harry, but I don't think we can go anywhere until tomorrow when we're feeling better. We should put up some protection spells here and just recuperate."

Harry swore again. This was rubbish. Another day wasted while Rodolphus got closer to his goals.

Once the spells were up, they all did what they could to make the dingy little room habitable with magic. Several rodents scurried across the floor. Alex gave a little squeal and flashed them back into their nests while Hermione set an anti-pest charm with a sigh.

"I wish Kreacher were here," Harry moaned, "But I suppose he's too far away being that he's on the opposite side of the world from us." Harry tried calling for Kreacher, but he was indeed too far away.

**~o0o~**

Zhang Bai Ze was angry... infuriated in fact. Children did not outfox the Dragon Master of the Black Lotus Triad. He motioned to the bodyguards who had remained in the lounge with him. His orders were implicitly understood, and every prone henchman in the lobby took two bullets to the back of the head.

Rodolphus began to wonder what he'd got himself into. He'd really had enough of stepping on eggshells around paranoid egomaniacs and playing second or third fiddle to them. He wanted Potter, but Zhang seemed more interested in the girls. Rodolphus sighed, he would just have to hope that Zhang's men would track them all down.

And that was Zhang's next order. Several of the wizards among his bodyguards had been dispatched to start tracing the apparition trail of Potter and his girlfriends. Though they weren't having much success. Wherever the young British wizards were, they had already managed to set up an unplottable charm.


	20. Chapter 20

That evening, the young wizards had dozed off on the small rodent gnawed bed in the grimy little room. They were all startled awake by a loud cracking sound.

 _ **"Oh my God!** What is it?"_ squealed Alex. Hermione gasped. Harry was stunned, then his face split into a huge grin.

"It's _Kreacher_ \--he DID hear me! It's alright Alex, he's a House-Elf, he sort of came with #12, but he works at Hogwarts these days. It must have taken him hours to apparate all the way here.

"Master is correct," the House-Elf croaked. "Kreacher heard Master call and Kreacher had to travel thousands of miles to find you. Kreacher will do whatever Master commands."

"What does he mean? Why is he calling you Master?" Alex demanded with a frown. Harry turned beet red.

"It's a bit... erm... awkward. House-Elves are bound by magic to the owners of a Wizard home," Harry glanced at Hermione and continued. "It's unfair really--not right at all. They've been enslaved by Wizard magic, and are forced to obey their Masters. I didn't want a slave, but most House-Elves get very upset when you try to free them. I freed a house-elf from his masters once, but he's the only one so far who seems to be alright with it."

"And _I've_ started a group to try and help House-Elves gain rights," Hermione intoned passionately. "Now that Mr Weasley is the minister, we probably will be able to work out a new arrangement."

"In any case," Harry went on again, "I only call for Kreacher if we really need some help... but not as a slave."

Alex understood. Most American Wizards often treated other magical creatures with just as little regard for them as British Wizards did. She had certainly done her share of using them to her advantage, but she had mostly grown out of it, and she had never dreamed of actually keeping one as a slave (besides which, Alex's attempts to use pocket-elves and fairies to achieve her goals hadn't exactly worked out well for her).

"Kreacher, this is Alex..." Harry began by way of introduction. But Kreacher interrupted.

"Yes Master's new Mistress..." Kreacher gave a little bow, and Alex giggled. Kreacher continued, "I will serve her as I do you and Mistress Granger, Master."

Harry felt extremely uncomfortable. It was lovely that Kreacher had come around from being bitter and hateful, but Harry couldn't stand obsequiousness.

"Please... Kreacher, just call us all by our first names alright."

"Whatever Master wishes," Kreacher said, averting Harry's gaze.

Alex giggled, and Hermione rolled her eyes. They could both see that this was one "order" that Kreacher was not going to obey.

"Right, whatever..." Harry sighed, "Okay, Kreacher, can you get us to Tibet?"

"Yes I can Master Harry..."

Harry raised his eyebrows. Kreacher was doing his best to comply with Harry's wishes, even if he couldn't go all the way.

"...but it will take a while and many apparitions. Where in Tibet do Master Harry and his Mistresses want to go?" asked Kreacher.

Alex was now trying to stifle a giggling fit at being called one of Harry's "mistresses" again. Harry looked at Hermione. She understood the quandary immediately.

"I... I don't really know how to tell you Kreacher. We don't really know the exact location of the monastery is. If we were apparating ourselves, we could get there because we've been there once."

"If you've been there, then I can find it Mistress Hermione. That is part of a House-Elf's magic," Kreacher replied.

**~o0o~**

Zhang, Dolohov, and Hess entered the abandoned Temple of the Monkey King at the base of Zu Mountain, somewhere in the Wudang Range. It was a place which muggles could never find. The magic of the mountain prevented most non-magical humans from finding it, though it wasn't completely unheard of. Every once in a few hundred years or so, some muggles did manage to make their way into the realm.

In fact, Zhang and his men had brought along several muggles for the sacrifice. A girl's muffled scream came from one of the lumpy sacks they were carrying. The man carrying her gave her a sharp whack, and the bag went silent.

Three naked girls were laid in a triangle shape on the stone altar. They squirmed and moaned, but they were bound and gagged. Zhang, Rodolphus, and Wolfgang each stood over a victim with Stone Knives in their raised hands. A flame was lit in the centre of the altar, and the Dark Ritual began with a chant.


	21. Chapter 21

It was dark and it was freezing. Hard snow lay on the ground and crunched underfoot. But there it was, the Temple of the Golden Dragon. The ornately carved gates were emblazoned with the triskelions which Hermione had described.

"Does Master Harry require anything else?" asked Kreacher eagerly.

"Not at the moment," replied Harry, "But we might need your help again. Perhaps you can find something to occupy yourself with--do something fun--close enough to reach us in a hurry."

"Fun?" The house-elf's ancient features crinkled in consternation.

"Don't house-elves have any recreational activities?" Hermione asked. Kreacher looked thoughtful, then his features brightened.

"Kreacher likes knitting..." he said. Alex started giggling again and Harry smirked with a snort. Hermione gave them a glare and they both shut up.

The house-elf vanished with a pop, and the wizards pondered the front gates as they shivered despite the parkas which they had pulled out of Hermione's bottomless bag. It was nearly midnight, and the temple looked asleep. But the gates began to open inwards with a deep groaning sound.

Just inside the gates were three monks holding lanterns. They beckoned the young wizards forth.

"Greetings weary travelers. We have been awaiting your arrival."

**~o0o~**

The second part of the ritual had been completed. And the mutilated corpses of the sacrificial victims had been carted away by Zhang's men, leaving only the blood in the grooves of the elaborate triangle carved in the surface of the stone dais. The flames were now flickering with a violet light.

Golden goblets encrusted with jewels stood on the three corners of the Stone Table, glinting in the flames in the centre emerging from a cloisonne urn. The Two Dark Wizards and the Dark muggle Sorcerer each performed an elaborate incantation, the palms of their hands facing towards the goblets. The blood in them began to froth as it heated, then each wizard took one in turn and drank from the goblets until they were empty.

They began chanting again their palms now facing the flames in the middle of the altar. The intensity increased, and the flames had become ripples in the air as they shifted into ultraviolet. The ripples began to expand into a large barely visible globe. A bright red light began glowing in the centre. The rhythm of the chanting quickened and the light turned white before it flashed, temporarily blinding the spell casters.

**~o0o~**

"What do you mean you've been waiting for us?" Alex asked, her eyes narrowed in suspicion as she took note of the long white beards. She was getting a little tired of old men with long white beards trying to run her life.

"It will be more comfortable inside where we can talk," said the monk in the middle.

None of the young shivering wizards could disagree with that, so they followed the monks into the temple. It was warm inside, and the halls flickered in the lamp light.

They settled in a large chamber on cushions near a roaring fire. The chimney flue was hewn with ornate dragons, the gems in their eyes glittering in the firelight. The Lama of the temple spoke again.

"You are the prophesied Triune of the 7th Age of Man. Welcome to our humble temple. We have been awaiting the arrival of the Golden Triune for the past century. We are most honoured by the presence of such Glorious Immortals." The three monks dropped their heads in a bow towards the wizards.

The wizards glanced at each other startled, and more than a bit embarrassed.

"Erm... We're just wizards, we aren't immortal..." Harry started to say.

"Once a Golden Triune is bonded, they are bound through Eternity, sustaining each other through the cycles of life. You are now part of the Hidden Worlds as you were not before. Only a Golden Triune can reach from the heavens to the earth as gods themselves."

Now the wizards were really disconcerted. It was more or less what Xenophilius had said. But he had spoken in rational terms. The Holy Reverence with which they were now being addressed gave them all goosebumps.

"Well, erm... the reason we're here..." began Hermione.

"...is to seek the Dragon's Tears, and to put an end once and for all the demon kings who have usurped the powers of the gods for the past 6,000 years. The symbol on the gate is YOUR symbol. Only the Golden Triune can wield the Dragon's Tears against the Demon Kings," the Lama stated.

"Wait..." said Alex. "Is this some sort of trick to find out if we're 'worthy' or not? Because I am so _OVER_ that crap!" she concluded vehemently.

The monks looked taken aback. Hermione quickly jumped in to distract their "devotees."

"So do you have the Dragon's Tears here? And what do we do with them?"

The monks appeared relieved to be addressed by Hermione.

"We have the scroll which will instruct you. The Dragon's Tears are hidden where they cannot be found by man or wizard. But the scroll shall reveal all to the Golden Triune."


	22. Chapter 22

Abaddon, King of the Fire Realm, stirred in his sleep. He felt a ripple in the depths of the multiverse disturb his dreams. But he had only been asleep for a decade and didn't feel like waking from his nap yet. So he ignored the feeling and rolled over, continuing in his slumber.

**~o0o~**

A tear in the fabric of the world opened up into another dimension, and a loathsome gigantic Beast emerged. He had 10 heads, each one with long sharp teeth, and 20 arms. The hands looked more like claws with long talons for nails. Its skin was blue and its eyes were flames. It was dressed in gold armour, and 20 swords dangled from his belt. He stood over 10 metres tall and 20 eyes trained themselves on the wizards and the sorcerer.

Ravana could feel the spells binding him to the Urn which had opened the portal to his world, and cursed himself for not paying more attention. But if the puny mortals believed that the Urn would hold him for long, they were sadly mistaken. They wouldn't provide as much sustenance as the Deities and Demons which had all been devoured by Ravana and his Rakshasa hordes, but they might make a tasty snack.

 **"What do you want Mortals?"** Ravana's voice thundered through the temple, and it shook slightly. **"If I do not like what you have to say, no spells can bind me. I am not some Djinn or Petty Demon you can call up and expect to obey your commands. I am the Eater of Gods!**

 **I shall rend the flesh from your bones, and I shall eat you alive limb by limb if your summoning does not benefit me in some manner!"**  
The wizards and the sorcerer trembled before the Demon King, even Zhang. If this went wrong, they were all doomed.

**~o0o~**

The scroll unrolled into a sizable, though not too unwieldy map. It was decorated with the Triskelions which represented the Dragon's Tears... and by extension represented the Wizard Triune who controlled them. There was a long passage of writing down the left side of the scroll with detailed instructions for casting the spells binding each wizard to a Tear.

Even Hermione could feel the buzz of magical energy emanating from the scroll. It was a magical artifact in its own right. Only the Golden Triune would be allowed to plumb its secrets, and the writing appeared in the language of the beholder.

Hermione looked crestfallen. Harry wasn't going to like this one bit. The Dragon's Tears were buried deep inside the mountain under the temple complex of Machu Picchu in Peru.

**~o0o~**

Ravana considered the request of the Mortals who had attempted to ensnare him. There was little gain involved for him. But still, Yahweh had it coming. Yahweh had been abrogating their arrangement and encroaching on the Eater of Gods' territory for the last few centuries. Losing Britain would send a statement that Ravana would no longer tolerate it.


	23. Chapter 23

The young wizards had apparated back to Hong Kong and used the Floo Network to Lima, Peru. Then they had apparated to the old temple complex at Machu Picchu. It was early afternoon, which was something, thought Harry. The view of the surrounding mountains from the peak was spectacular. But the tourists and security milling about some of the rebuilt ruins could be a potential problem he thought.

"It won't be in the temple complex Harry," said Hermione. "That was only built in the 15th century by the Incans. They built it right on top of the ruins of temples from much more ancient civilisations built thousands of years ago. Though most muggles don't know that."

"So we'll probably be dealing with all kinds of magical obstacles in caves like usual then," moaned Alex. What was it with grouchy old Wizards and magical obstacle courses in caves?

"More than likely," Hermione replied. Then with a little laugh she continued, "And any security measures were probably put in by wizards with more imagination than your Professor Crumbs, Alex. I suspect we'll find much more dangerous things than sharks with lasers on their heads"

"Thanks Hermione... that's very comforting to know," Harry groaned a bit sarcastically. "So how do we get in then? Does that map say?"

Hermione laid the map out on a flat stone slab so they could all see.

Now that they were actually here, the map was displaying a detailed 3D projected view of the entire complex--much like a hologram. All three of them were quite impressed by the magic. It performed the same function as the Wizard GPS used by many American wizards, but it was much more fun.

"Is that an entrance Hermione?" Alex asked. She pointed to something that looked like a door to some cellars which appeared to have a shaft leading deep into the mountain. There were other shafts, but that one went the deepest.

Hermione nodded.

"Yes, I think you're right Alex."

**~o0o~**

Rodolphus was startled when the scene changed around him, and so were Zhang and Hess. It was nothing like apparating; no twisting into space or feeling like you were being sucked through a straw. It felt like no space had been traversed at all. One moment the ancient Hall of the Temple of the Monkey King surrounded them, the next they were in the Crown Room of Edinburgh Castle.

Ravana's magic was beyond anything the wizards and the sorcerer had ever experienced. The Demon ignored them and regarded the Stone of Destiny. For over a thousand years the stone had guaranteed that no wizard could ever sit on the Throne of Britain. Tonight that would end.

_Machu Picchu_


	24. Chapter 24

This time the King of the Fire Realm awoke and sat right up. He could not ignore THAT! And if he didn't get a handle on it, he could find himself cast into the Pit alongside Baal Zebab. And Abaddon much preferred his job as King of the Fire Realm to the possibility of Eternal Torment.

**~o0o~**

There was a shattering of glass as barriers were broken, and then a thunderous crack as Ravana turned the Stone of Destiny into rubble. Edinburgh Castle shook. The dusty haze began to clear, and the Eater of Gods turned to the Mortals who had summoned him.

**"I have fulfilled your request. The protections of the Crown are as dust. Do with it what you will. I do not care. My task is done... and now I have only to wait for my own agenda to be fulfilled."**

"Erm... you don't mean here do you?" asked Rodolphus with some trepidation.

 **"Of course not, Foolish Mortal,"** the Eater of Gods sneered. **"I shall meet 'Yahweh Elohim'..."** He snorted at the Demon-Formerly-Known-as-Marduk's hubris for adopting such a title, **"...on the Field of Battle at Megiddo."** And with that, the monster vanished, leaving the wizards and the sorcerer to their own devices.

Zhang smiled slyly.

"It is done. When you take the Crown, I will be ready to collect on your promise to cede control of Britain's muggle criminal underground to me. For now, I suspect that you will have your hands full. Good luck!" Zhang apparated before Rodolphus or Hess got a chance to violently renege on their bargain.

Indeed, they did have their hands full. The Castle was in an uproar. All alarm systems had been tripped when the Stone had been demolished and muggle security teams were locking down everything. And soon, the Ministry of Magic would know that something was seriously wrong and have their own teams working the Castle.

But they weren't here for the Crown Jewels themselves. The real Crown--the Magical Seal--had just been broken, and it was theirs for the taking. Hess and Rodolphus looked at each other greedily.

"Well, cousin, you've come this far--with my help," Hess said. "Shall we finish the job then?"

Rodolphus nodded.

"And this time I'm going to turn Azkaban into a ruin," he sneered. With a crack, the wizard and the sorcerer disapparated. And not a moment too soon. The King of the Fire Realm arrived, and he looked distraught.

Abaddon peered at the rubble which had been the Stone of Destiny in dismay. This was bad, very, very bad. He knew where to find Ravana though. The King of the Rakshasa would be waiting in Megiddo. The King of the Fire Realm just hoped that he could defeat the other demon king before Yahweh found out that he no longer controlled Britain and blamed Abaddon.

**~o0o~**

Ibn Ben Salim was running. The boy had no idea why the security forces were chasing him, but they didn't really need an excuse to chase him. He belonged to the "wrong people" and he was on the wrong side of the Wall and that was enough. Ibn ran across the highway and ducked into a copse of trees.

Tel Megiddo was just ahead. Ibn decided he stood a better chance of losing the security forces there and dashed towards a nearby rocky outcropping. There was a loud rumbling and the ground shook, knocking him off his feet. Ibn looked up and was frozen in horror.

The security forces caught up to Ibn, but were so startled by the sight that they forgot about him. One little boy was unimportant--the soldiers had just been bored. But this... this was not boring at all. It was terrifying in fact.

On the peak of Mount Megiddo loomed a massive blue creature with 10 heads and 20 arms. It stood at least 150 metres tall and its silhouette blotted out the late afternoon sun.

**~o0o~**

Without any fuss at all Harry, Alex, and Hermione had located and passed through the doorway and down the stairs leading to the cellars which they had spotted on the map. But locating the opening to the shaft which led to older and deeper levels of the temple complex proved to be a bit more work. They only discovered it when Alex got tired of looking and sat on a stone block next to a pillar by the wall.

There was a grinding of ancient gears and a rumble. The wall at the back of the cellar slowly opened to reveal the tunnel leading to the lower levels.


	25. Chapter 25

Cautiously, with lit wands, the three wizards began to follow the steep and narrow stairs carved into the mountain rock. They were roughly a hundred and fifty metres below the surface when they reached the first level down. They had to find their way to the next flight of stairs, but half a dozen tunnels exited the chamber they had emerged into.

"Right..." Harry said, "We're staying together, even if that means we have to take longer to search each tunnel one at a time."

Hermione and Alex both quickly agreed. Nobody was keen to be lost by themselves in these tunnels. Hermione made a mark at the entrance to the first tunnel they tried. After about 10 minutes of winding around, they emerged into a large chamber. Alcoves were cut into the walls, each with an ancient mummified body in it. Otherwise, it was a dead-end.

They followed the tunnel back to the first chamber and tried the next one. After a few minutes of strolling down the second tunnel, Alex stopped short.

"What's wrong Alex?" Harry asked.

"I... I'm not sure. I thought I heard something."

There was a loud cracking sound, the floor collapsed beneath them and their wand-lights went out. The three wizards tumbled into blackness screaming. Something broke Alex's fall, but thankfully it didn't feel like rock. She relit her wand and realised that she had fallen into a rope net. It had already closed over and she was trapped.

Alex tried a number of spells with both of her wands, but the rope net appeared to be impervious to magic. Then she noticed a ledge and what looked like an opening in the side of the shaft about 5 metres away. She wondered if she could swing over to it. But before she had a chance to try, the net had already begun moving to the ledge.

And then Alex spotted vaguely humanoid shapes emerging from the shadowed archway and began to panic. She tried several wandless spells, but nothing seemed to be working. As the net dropped her onto the ledge, ancient withered hands with leathery skin reached for her and pulled her out of the net as she screamed.

**~o0o~**

Harry kept tumbling through the darkness until he fell into liquid. His momentum plunged him deeply into the watery death trap. He held his breath until he bobbed to the surface. Gasping and sputtering, he relit his wand. He appeared to be in some sort of well about 10 metres across. Vicious looking spikes lined the walls.

Harry tried to use his wand to levitate out of the water. Nothing. Harry tried some wandless magic. Still nothing. A gnawing feeling of doom began to roil in the pit of his stomach. The feeling turned to alarm when the water caught fire. As flames lit the surface from the edge of the well, Harry took a deep breath and dropped back down beneath the surface. His alarm turned to terror when he felt skeletal hands grasping his feet and pulling him even deeper.

**~o0o~**

Hermione's fall was broken by something squishy, foul smelling and oozing. Her wand light didn't help much. All that she could tell was that it was organic and alive. She shrieked when a slimy tentacle wrapped around one of her legs. She tried some spells with her wand, but except for lighting her immediate vicinity, it was having no effect.

Wandless spells were having no effect either. Numerous tentacles now disabled Hermione and lifted her into the air as a gaping maw opened up beneath her revealing hundreds of razor sharp teeth.

**~o0o~**

Ibn noticed one of the soldiers approaching him while the other three gawked at the monster on the mountain. Ibn didn't know what terrified him the most, the beast or the soldier. But the soldier glanced back at the others and bent down to talk to Ibn.

"Shhh... stay quiet and come with me while the others aren't looking," the soldier said kindly.

"Wha... what...?" began the boy.

"Shhh... in a minute. Let's get you somewhere safe... before the others see. Come _on!"_

The soldier grabbed Ibn's hand, but not harshly, and he led the boy back to the town.

"If anyone asks, you're my nephew okay!?" said the soldier.

"Y... y... yes s... sir!" stuttered the terrified boy.

"Hayyim, call me Hayyim... Better make that Uncle Hayyim in public okay? Do you have any family? Can I take you home?"

Tears filled Ibn's eyes and shook his head. His parents had been murdered by Security Forces several months ago, and he had been living hand to mouth ever since. The soldier's jaw clenched and his eyes looked bitter. Hayyim hated his job.

"Well, I suppose I really will be your 'Uncle' for now then. I'll take you home to my mother, get you cleaned up and fed. Nobody is going to miss me while THAT..." Hayyim motioned towards the demon standing on Mount Meggido, "...is going on."

"Why are you helping me?" sniffled the crying boy suspiciously as he wiped his nose on his sleeve.

Hayyim wasn't sure what to say and flushed. Ibn reminded him of his own little brother who had been killed in a rocket attack sent from the territories on the other side of The Wall several years ago. Hayyim just wanted all the horror to end. He was tired of all the killing.

"I... you... Everything here is all wrong. If I can make one life better, then it is good."

Ibn accepted the statement and then without another thought the boy sobbed and put his arms around the soldier. Hayyim lifted Ibn in his arms and carried him home.

Sarai Vital looked up from her copy of the Book of Zohar when she heard her son come home. She knew it was her son, because the enchantments she had protecting the home would only allow him entrance. But there was someone with him she sensed... another Wizard.


	26. Chapter 26

Abaddon got the chills and the scales on the back of his neck bristled. The power radiating from Ravana was immense, vaster by far than he remembered. The last time Abaddon had met the King of the Rakshasa was two and a half thousand years ago--give or take a few decades--when Yahweh had struck the bargain with Ravana to divide the world between themselves.

Ravana snorted with derision when he saw Abaddon arrive. The fool hadn't even expanded himself yet. The pipsqueak was barely 20 metres tall. The Eater of Gods regarded Abbadon's locust-like visage and his otherwise rather generic demon hooves, scales and horns. Yahweh had an appalling lack of imagination for somebody pretending to be a deity mused Ravana. He wondered if the Old Coot was still sporting a human form and a long white beard.

**~o0o~**

Dozens of the desiccated undead mummies swarmed Alex in the inky darkness, tearing and biting at her, turning her clothes into shredded bloody rags. Without her magic Alex was convinced she was about to die.

NO, Alex thought angrily. That was NOT going to happen. She had to save Harry and Hermione. Then with a bloodcurdling scream she exploded.

**~o0o~**

Harry refused to give in to the feeling that Death was stalking him. It wasn't his time. He wasn't going to leave Hermione and Alex. And he still had work to do, people to save... a world to save. He tried to maintain his breath, but it was getting harder and harder as he was dragged ever deeper into the black depths of the well by the creatures which dwelled there. Finally he couldn't hold it any longer, but instead of drowning he turned into a blazing orb of light and heat.

**~o0o~**

The teeth of the Cthulhu barely touched Hermione's legs as it lowered her headfirst into its throat, but the tentacles were squeezing her so tightly, Hermione thought she would pass out from lack of oxygen. That would be a relief she thought. She didn't want to be awake as the creature digested her. But then she remembered that Alex and Harry needed her. She couldn't let it end this way.

The Cthulhu was surprised. It didn't usually get heartburn after a snack. That was its last thought as its insides melted from the blast.


	27. Chapter 27

"He cannot stay here," Sarai told her son softly while Ibn was eating in the kitchen.

"But why?" asked Hayyim, distressed. He wasn't letting his little brother die again. When he looked at Ibn, he could only see his brother, and he wanted him to live. He was not going to throw Ibn back in the streets to fend for himself.

"Because it is not safe for him here my sweet," she said gently, "and it is no longer safe here for you either. He is a Wizard, and you are now a deserter from the IDF."

Hayyim gaped at his mother. The boy was a Wizard? But he had shown no indication of powers. But then Hayyim didn't have his mother's abilities, and he supposed that was why he hadn't noticed Ibn's. Hayyim's mother regarded him with concern etched on her features. It saddened her that her son hadn't been born a Wizard.

If he had been a wizard, perhaps he could have avoided serving with the IDF. And if he had been a wizard her youngest son might still be alive.

"My child, here, take this letter and keep it safe. They must know what is happening in Megiddo. You and the boy must leave for Britain. You will look after him as if he were your own flesh and blood. She will look after you both. You will go by Floo as soon as the little one has finished dinner."

Hayyim peered at the envelope curiously. It was addressed to Professor Minerva McGonagall, Headmistress of Hogwarts. His mother gave him a silver ring and a gold amulet she had recently finished enchanting.

"Put these on my son," she said with a soulful gaze, "As long as you wear these, you will be able to do whatever a wizard can do. It took me years to weave the enchantments, but I have finished them at last. They carry the greatest magic I can give you--my Love." Hayyim stared at his mother in awe.

**~o0o~**

Professor McGonagall peered at the older boy. He seemed older than his years; his eyes were shadowed by death. She had known Sarai for decades, and had helped her eldest son get into Hogwarts. He now lived in America with his wife. Hayyim had been Sarai's second son, and her youngest had been killed several years ago.

Hayyim had been born without magic. But Professor McGonagall couldn't bring herself to think of him as a squib. And according to the letter from her old friend, the Headmistress wouldn't have to think of him that way. Minerva would have to teach him. He came from a long line of Hebrew wizards, and Sarai Vital assured her that he would be able to perform as long as he wore his charms.

This was all highly irregular, bordering on illegal under current law. Of course neither the Board of Governors nor the Ministry could be told. But Minerva knew that she could trust Arthur to help keep this to himself.

And the Headmistress didn't know what to make of the boy wizard, or of Sarai's request. He was 11 years old, and she would accept him into Hogwarts of course. But Sarai had asked her to change Ibn's surname to Vital and to keep his true identity hidden.

And then this business with Ravana in Megiddo--for that was no doubt who the ten headed, twenty armed blue demon was. He had been briefly spotted with Rodolphus Lestrange and two other wizards whom the Ministry had determined to be his Swiss cousin, and Zhang, the most dangerous wizard in Asia not more than 60 miles away at Edinburgh Castle when the Stone of Destiny had been destroyed. 

She would have to immediately notify Arthur that Ravana was currently in Megiddo. That could only mean one thing, but she shook her head in dismay at the thought and prayed that she was wrong.

**~o0o~**

Harry came to and sat up groggily, his eyes coming into focus. He was in a glittering crystalline chamber and he was naked. He looked about him and he saw Hermione and Alex who were also unclothed and waking up. He gave a huge sigh of relief.

"Hermione, Alex, are you two alright?"

"I think so Harry. But what about you, you look exhausted?" replied Hermione.

"I'll be fine. I've just got a bit of a headache. You Alex?"

Alex was examining her body. Remarkably, she was fine. Even the wound she had received in Hong Kong had completely healed and vanished without a trace. But Alex looked as white as a sheet, her face still etched with terror and she was breathing fast.

"No... no I'm _not_ okay. I... I was being **eaten** by zombified mummies. My..." Alex heaved a big sob and scrunched her face, "...they were chewing my flesh..."

Hermione and Harry looked horrified. They had both escaped any extreme physical harm.

 _"Oh My God!"_ Hermione gasped as she clutched the trembling and panicked girl to her breast. "I'm so sorry Alex... But you're here with us now, and you're whole. You'll be alright."

Anxiously Harry embraced his two partners tightly and gave each a kiss.

"I thought we were all goners, I'm just happy you're both alive," Harry swallowed, "I don't know what I would do if... if... if anything happened to either of you! I love you both so much!"

After recovering themselves somewhat, the wizards looked around the sparkling chamber. No light source could be seen but it was bright. Their clothes and their wands were nowhere to be seen. They were in the centre of the chamber and sitting in the middle of a 13 pointed star etched into the crystal floor.

And there, in between the three of them, were the Dragon's Tears. Each part of the black crystal Triskelion was outlined in silver with a gold pentagram inlaid in the centre. The wizards knew what to do having perused the now missing scroll. They each took a tear, held it in the palm of their right hands and murmured an incantation in turn. The gems glowed a deep violet.

The crystal cavern was bathed in Black Light and the Dragon's Tears became incorporeal. The glowing forms sank into their palms and filled their bodies with the light. Then the three nude young wizards clasped each others' hands forming an unbroken triangle.

The sex ritual was exacting. They each had to reach the peak of the experience together for the completion of the bond. 

But the the two girls and the boy weren't even thinking about the details any more. Desire had taken them and they were lost in each other. Hermione straddled Harry and her breathing quickened as she and Harry moved in time together. Alex was behind Hermione, her arms around Hermione's waist. Alex's soft hands caressed Hermione's lean stomach and slowly moved up her torso to her breasts. Her lips found Hermione's. 

The girls traded places and changed positions with Harry as the passion moved them. Harry was now on top of Alex. The bodies of the young wizards writhed together as one. Alex moaned as a feeling of bliss swept over her--Hermione and Harry gasped in ecstasy. The young wizards climaxed simultaneously and a flare of white light burst from them and turned into an blinding orb which enveloped the entire crystal chamber for an eternal moment. 

Slowly the brilliance faded away as the euphoria ebbed. After awhile, Hermione stirred and sat up, beads of sweat glistening on her brow. She smiled at her lovers. They could all feel the enormity of the magic within themselves.

"I don't think we'll be needing wands anymore," Hermione said as her smile broke into a grin.


	28. Chapter 28

**Part 3**

**Dragon Fire**

**Chapter 28**

Rodolphus and Wolfgang stood on an Orkney bluff gazing out across the North Sea at an island several kilometres away. They were accompanied by five wizards in muggle military special ops uniforms with swastika armbands and three other wizards in full Thule regalia. They had just finished setting up an artillery launcher and targeting the island.

The Aryan wizards from Europe had denied Voldemort's request for assistance in his coup after discovering that he had murdered Karkaroff. But they had no such qualms about helping Rodolphus Lestrange who had been their liaison at the beginning of the war.

The English wizard was grinning from ear to ear. He had never in his life considered using advanced muggle weaponry and marveled again at the stupidity and arrogance of wizards for ignoring muggles altogether. You had to know your Enemy, especially if you planned to rule over them.

The fact was that as yet very few wizards in Britain knew how to protect themselves from high velocity projectile weapons. Only those who had participated in muggle wars knew how. And the Ministry was blind to the gaping hole in Azkaban's magical defenses.

**~o0o~**

"Shame though..." said Harry, "I wish I could have kept my wand for posterity."

No sooner had he said that, he was startled to find his wand in his hand. His face dropped in shock. Hermione and Alex both followed suit. They all grinned at each other. They had all felt more naked without their wands than without their clothes. Speaking of which, clothes suddenly appeared magically on all three wizards.

Alex was now dressed in a slinky black satin catsuit looking extremely sexy. Hermione's face was burning scarlet and she groaned, burying her face in her hands. Harry couldn't help laughing. Hermione was wearing a Wonder Woman outfit, but he had to admit she looked quite stunning in it.

Alex was laughing her head off at Harry because Harry was dressed in exactly the same motheaten jeans and sweatshirt which he'd arrived in, and his hair looked like a haystack. Apparently they had all conjured up what was in the back of their minds. Harry just couldn't imagine himself in anything else despite all of Alex's makeovers.

Alex blinked. Harry found himself in a James Bond tuxedo and his hair perfectly coifed. He grinned at Alex.

"Thanks Alex. I guess I'm just used to looking like Dudley's leftovers."

Still blushing furiously, Hermione was trying to think of a "superhero" outfit that didn't look so ridiculous. For some reason she couldn't get the outfit she had worn when pretending to be Bellatrix out of her mind. Well, no reason they couldn't all be wearing black she supposed with a wry smile.

In a wink, she was dressed in a more elaborate leather version of the black catsuit. Hermione hadn't wanted the skirt; she wanted to be able to move easily. She was just feeling very naughty, and Bellatrix's top had been rather low cut revealing a lot of cleavage. And she had been wearing a black trenchcoat.

Harry couldn't stop grinning as he admired his partners, but he made a stalwart effort to take stock of where they were at, and determine the next course of action.

**~o0o~**

**"So I see Yahweh has sent his pet insect to do a Demon's work."** sneered Ravana.

Abaddon rolled his insect-like eyes at the rather pathetic attempt to insult him. He was much more concerned by Yahweh's Wrath and had no desire to spend Eternity in the pit listening to Baal Zebab whining about losing his bet with Yahweh. Abaddon would rather have a quick death at Ravana's hands... or rather, his numerous fangs.

So he released the power contained within himself and in mere seconds he was over 100 metres tall. Air Raid Sirens were wailing in the town which the King of the Fire Realm now towered over. Soldiers were massing and heavy artillery was being moved into position. Abaddon ignored them all and launched himself at Ravana, causing an earthquake which knocked all the tiny humans to the ground.

The top of Mount Megiddo exploded into rubble and dust and the creatures were gone, hurtling towards the Arabian peninsula at supersonic speed. Ravana had been taken by surprise, expecting a bit of taunting and banter back and forth before the fight began. Before he could collect himself, he was hurled through a huge skyscraper in Dubai as tall as himself. The skyscraper was flattened and turned to gravel and twisted steel along with half a dozen nearby buildings as hundreds of panicked people ran screaming in the streets trying to avoid being crushed by the monsters.


	29. Chapter 29

"I bet that demon dude is on the loose now..." Alex began as she scowled.

"So who do we follow? Rodolphus or the demon?" Harry asked.

Hermione's face dropped as the realisation of the magnitude of the situation hit her.

"I think Alex is right Harry. The demon will be on his own by now and sure to be making the most of it before returning to his dimension. This could be awful if he's planning on killing a lot of people."

"So how do we get out of here?" Harry asked as he looked around the crystal chamber. They had discovered no way to exit the chamber, magically or otherwise when they had inspected it before performing the ritual.

Alex rolled her eyes and snapped her fingers. Moments later there was a pop and the three wizards were back in the ruins at the top of the mountain. Alex grinned playfully and flicked Harry's ear.

" With magic you idiot! We just got a MAJOR Power-up. So now all we have to do is wish we were where this demon creep is and we'll just be there--wherever he is."

Hermione chuckled despite the gravity of the circumstances.

"Alex is right Harry. I doubt we'll ever need to use the International Floo Network again."

Harry grinned. He could deal with the time-zone changes if he wasn't stuck in them.

"Well... what are we waiting for? Let's see where we end up then," he responded.

Moments later the three wizards were trying to stop from being trampled by hundreds of screaming people running through the streets in the middle of what looked like a war-zone.

**~o0o~**

Yahweh had been searching for his son for the last 2,000 years. His grandmother Sophia had stolen the child after its birth and vanished into the infinite dimensions of the multiverse. Sophia had always hated Yahweh; ever since he had slain Tiamat and declared himself King of the Gods--Overlord of the Annunaki. He didn't know why Sophia gave a damn. It wasn't like she had ever got on with her daughter Tiamat, his mother.

And why did she care about her great-grandchild? He was only a bastard. A product of his loins and a human girl whom he had taken while she slept.

But Yahweh; he wanted his son back. He had big plans for his Son which involved a rather spectacular show-stopping event and the End of the World! His grandmother however, had claimed that his son deserved to be raised by someone of a higher moral character.

Yahweh was in the middle of exploring a universe several away from his own when he felt a slight twinge in the centre of his forehead. Someone had just broken one of his spells.

As soon as Yahweh returned to his throne room in the Cloud Realm, he picked up the red telephone which was his direct line to the Fire Realm. Abaddon had better be on top of this he thought.

Hermes picked up the Red Phone with a sigh. After Yahweh, Emperor of the Seven Realms and King of the Cloud Realm, had wiped out most of the other Olympians he had assigned Hermes to man the switchboard of the Fire Realm... but the only line on the switchboard was the Red Phone. That was Hermes' eternal torment: to answer a phone which almost never rings.

**~o0o~**

Rodolphus gave Azkaban one last look. Soon, all the useless fools would be gone along with the prison which housed them. The captured Death Eaters weren't worth the effort to free them he had decided. Finally, he nodded to his cousin Wolfgang who gave the order to fire the heavy artillery launcher.

There was a deafening roar as a missile shot into the sky. A few seconds later there was a flash and a billowing mushroom-cloud followed by a loud boom. Azkaban was no more.

**~o0o~**

The Minister of Magic was tearing out what little remained of his hair. He had earlier been informed that the Stone of Destiny had been destroyed by a demon. Then the Headmistress of Hogwarts had called to tell him that the same demon was now hundreds of feet tall and threatening Megiddo. And now Azkaban was vaporised and a demon brawl had broken out on the Arabian Peninsula.


	30. Chapter 30

Instinctively, the three wizards soared into the sky to take stock of the situation from a better vantage point. The blue monster with 20 arms and 10 heads had regained his footing, crushing several more buildings in the process. The demon with the horns appeared to be winding up for another attack. But this time Ravana was ready for Abaddon. He sidestepped, and grabbing one of Abaddon's arms, he used the other demon's momentum against himself and hurled the beast into the air.

Ravanna leapt up, propelling himself after the careening Abaddon. The force of the throw had been so powerful that the King of the Fire Realm burst the sound barrier with a loud boom as he flew through the atmosphere to the NW of the Arabian Peninsula. He had almost collected himself, but the Eater of Gods caught up to Abaddon at a much faster speed and tackled him. They came crashing down together onto a pyramid in Giza causing an earthquake and a tsunami of sand.

The three wizards had streaked through the sky in pursuit of the two giant demons. None of the wizards had a clue as to what they were doing. They were all acting on instinct, and wondering what on earth to do when they caught up to the monsters again. Having vast magical powers would mean nothing if they couldn't put them to good use.

Abaddon was down, flat on his back in the Egyptian sands with half of a pyramid collapsed underneath him and Ravana pinning him from above. Ravana opened 10 mouths full of sharp fangs, and reached down to start devouring the prone demon. Abaddon reacted in panic and opened his own mouth. Clouds of locusts swarmed from the demon's maw. Startled, the Eater of Gods fell back.

Ravana roared and a whirlwind took form. The locusts were sucked into a tornado of sand which shrank until it vanished, taking the insect hordes with it. The two gigantic monsters were both up on their feet and facing each other when the dust settled and the earth stopped trembling.

Even Hermione had no idea what to do, nothing had prepared the wizards for anything of this magnitude.

 **"You fool Abaddon..."** thundered Ravana, **"Did Yahweh Elohim really think I would let him Soul Steal a billion mortal adherents in my hemisphere in violation of our contract and allow it to continue without challenge? And, you. You're a pathetic excuse for a Demon... Doing Yahweh's bidding like the Obedient Slave you are."**

His words struck the sore spot which he knew was there, and the King of the Fire Realm snarled at Ravana. Abaddon's Kingship was as much a punishment as a reward, a constant reminder of the price of failure. The Emperor of the Seven Realms' inner circle remained at His side in the Cloud Realm.

Abaddon conjured up an enormous fireball and shot it at Ravana who just laughed when the ball swallowed him in a firestorm. Abaddon watched the inferno with trepidation. Something moved inside the conflagration and Abaddon flung himself aside. But it was too late. 7 of the 10 golden swords that flew from the wall of fire found their mark and pierced him. The King of the Fire Realm collapsed to the desert floor gasping, rivers of blood gushing from his wounds.

Ravana inhaled the flames until they were gone and grinned at his prey dying in the Egyptian sands.

**"I can see that you knew it would end this way, Abaddon. I must give you your due. You chose to die by my hands instead of face your Master Yahweh's wrath. Now your magic belongs to me, and I honour you for it."**

Harry, Hermione and Alex watched in horror from above. The fight had concluded before they had determined a battle plan.

"At least there's only one left!" yelled Alex.

"Yeah... The one which eats fire for dinner and demons for dessert. Brilliant!" Harry groaned sarcastically.

"We've got to get him away from populated areas," shouted Hermione. "There's three of us. One of us should draw his attention, try and draw him out over the Atlantic Ocean..."

"...Then we'll attack him together. Got it Hermione!" Alex called back. "I know what we're supposed to do. I'll lead him out..."

 _"NO!"_ yelled Harry, "It should be me..."

Hermione and Alex both rolled their eyes then glared at Harry. He withered slightly, then smiled wanly.

"Alright... alright. I'm an idiot. Right then Alex, what's your...?" Harry didn't get a chance to finish his question. Before his eyes, Alex's lissome form morphed and grew until she became a Black and Gold Dragon about the size of a small fighter jet. Without waiting for Hermione or Harry to say anything she flew down towards the Eater of Gods. She opened her jaws and fire shot out at the Beast's many heads.

Ravana was startled when flames singed some of his eyebrows. He looked up angrily and spotted a tiny dragon circling above him. This was extremely unexpected. The King of the Rakshasa had been preparing himself for the possibility of running into Yahweh, but he had no idea why such a tiny dragon would be trying to annoy him.

With a roar Ravana swatted several of his hands at the dragon which steered clear, then darted off across the desert at breakneck speed. Ravana was furious. He had not had time to eat his prey yet, but he couldn't let the dragon leave without discovering why it had provoked him; it was an unknown quantity.

Harry and Hermione watched as the demon flew after Alex the dragon. Then together, they followed suit and became dragons themselves. Like Alex, they were black and gold, but they hadn't chosen the colours themselves. It appeared to be the doing of the Dragon's Tears.

Once the demon and Alex seemed far enough away, the two dragons gave chase across the Sahara. Several minutes later they had traversed North Africa and reached the Atlantic.

Alex was too small to see at this distance against the darkening sky, but they could see the Eater of Gods speeding out across the ocean. The dragons needed to catch the demon before he could reach another continent or Alex. With growing trepidation, they doubled their speed.


	31. Chapter 31

Alex had no idea how fast she was flying, nor how far she and the demon had flown across the Atlantic. But she could feel the monster drawing nearer. She sensed her partners approaching and decided that now might be a good time to bring the chase to an end. Alex needed a way to trap Ravana and she thought she knew something that could work.

Harry and Hermione were only a few kilometres behind now, and would be on top of the Eater of Gods in seconds. The two approaching dragons were astonished when a massive net hundreds of metres square with roping as thick as bridge cables appeared out of thin air, dropping out of the sky. Ravana had no time to avoid it. Shock took the demon as he found himself tangled and his forward momentum slowed.

His attention diverted, the King of the Rakshasa lost height and plummeted into the Atlantic causing a concentric ring of tidal waves. He struggled and sunk deeper. The netting appeared to be impervious to magic--even demon magic. He had never run into anything like it.

Alex breathed a smoky sigh of relief when the other two dragons reached her. But they didn't have time to waste. The demon wouldn't be trapped for long. Hermione knew that they would never have enough time to perform the ritual required to send Ravana back to his realm. They would have to find another way to subdue him first.

And the moment had vanished. Beneath them the ocean frothed and roiled as a new landmass emerged. Ravana had created an island to lift himself above the waves. He had wasted no more time with magic on the netting, but he had almost torn his way out with his fangs and his talons.

He was livid. No dragon could have conjured up a magic demon-trap. In fact, no single mortal creature could magically Create something of that magnitude-though perhaps a few hundred wizards working in conjunction might be able to. Which could only mean that another demon or deity was around. But Yahweh--the only other demon who Ravana had been expecting--was nowhere to be seen. There were just three tiny dragons buzzing the newly formed island.

Three Dragons. Three Black and Gold Dragons. For some reason Ravana felt that he should know who these dragons were. A long lost memory began to float to the surface of his mind. The memory of a fairy-tale all Rakshasa mothers told their children to make them behave.

Adult demons in the Three Realms of the Rakshasa were well aware of the power of Wizard Triunes. And they also knew that Triunes were rare, and that the Golden Triune was rarer still. But that didn't stop them from repeating the prophecy long believed to be a fiction: That one day, a Golden Triune would discover the power of the Dragon and combine with it to become Immortal. Mothers warned their children that if they misbehaved Brahma would turn a Golden Triune into dragons and send them to kill the demon children as they slept.

It had never happened and most demons and deities never thought it would. Wizard Triunes had the power to protect Earth-Realm and to "bring the pain," so to speak, but even they couldn't actually destroy Immortals. Only other Immortals could kill demons and deities.

Ravana snorted derisively with all 20 nostrils. Ridiculous nonsense. Horror stories for children. This was obviously Yahweh's doing. Did that egomaniacal dullard really think he could frighten The Eater of Gods with bedtime stories?

 **"YAHWEH ELOHIM!"** roared the Demon King. **"SHOW YOURSELF! I WEARY OF YOUR GAMES!"**

  


The three dragons retreated a few kilometres in just the nick of time. A pillar of clouds descended from the heavens and touched down on the shore of the craggy island. They were dumbfounded when the cloud cover dispersed. On the island stood a gigantic wizard. Or rather, an enormous human figure about 150 metres tall with a long white beard wearing white robes was standing there, glowering at Ravana.

 ** _"GAMES?"_** bellowed Yahweh, **"You have a lot of nerve to speak of games after undoing my British Enchantments. Do you know how many of the Goddess Brigid's followers I had to slaughter for my own followers to take Britain over fifteen centuries ago? First I used the Romans, and when their empire crumbled I rebuilt it with the Stone of Destiny. It took me centuries to convert the Pagans and make their souls mine."**

 **"All well and good Marduk... Sorry--I mean Yahweh,"** sneered Ravana, **"But your ire seems remarkably ill-tuned, perhaps because you are deflecting from your contravention of our contract. I thought you were 'omnipotent' and 'all-knowing.' How did you not notice that in the last few centuries you have stolen a billion and a half souls which by Rights belong to ME!?"**

Yahweh looked extremely shifty. For a "deity," he seemed to be having a difficult time coming up with a credible response. Finally, he correctly decided that no lies would prevent this conflict from escalating. So he was all-in now. The battle was inevitable. The Emperor of the 7 Realms smirked.

 **"Heh! I suppose I did steal a few human souls in your neighbourhood. What can I say? Humans like me better."** Yahweh said with a chuckle. **"I'm not a Big Blue Meanie!"**

**"BAH! You are truly the Father of Lies! You lack all honour Yahweh. But I must give you your due for having the audacity to go so large with your deceptions. I have to wonder who you are really trying to lie to. Do you really believe your own press? You don't actually believe the rubbish that you tell the mortals about you being a 'Loving Merciful God' do you?"**

Yahweh flushed. His eyes narrowed...

 **"Oh _MY!"_** Ravana grinned, **"You really _ARE_ starting to believe your own hype. I understand the stupidity of mortals. Tell them that Black is White, and they will believe you. But how do you manage to convince yourself that you are a benevolent figure?"**

Yahweh had had enough. He didn't have to justify himself or his followers to Ravana. Yahweh had worked very hard to get where he was. He certainly was no cuddly St Nick, but whatever pleased Himself was Good by definition. If it wasn't so pleasant for the mortals, that was their problem. He needed their blood and their souls to fuel his power, and the mortals willingly provided them. It was Good for Him, which was the Greater Good and all should be grateful to receive His blessings.

The three dragons listened and watched, vainly hoping that the two demons would decide to pack it in for the day and go back to their respective realms, but the situation appeared to be going from bad to worse. And if it wasn't dealt with quickly it could even devolve into a full-scale war between the demon realms, with the Planet Earth as their battlefield.


	32. Chapter 32

Yahweh reached his right arm up and back with his hand open as if to clasp a javelin.

 **"Here's a little trick I stole from Zeus..."** The King of the Cloud Realm chuckled. There was a blinding flash of white and a massive bolt of lightning appeared in his hand.

Ravana had plenty of time to throw up a shield spell while the idiot telegraphed his move. Unfortunately for Ravana, the shield was just no match for a million terawatts of power. He was practically blasted into orbit, and his smouldering form lit up the sky as he soared out of sight to the Southwest. Yahweh gave pursuit, unknowingly followed by three dragons.

**~o0o~**

Kingsley Shacklebolt led the British Minister of Magic and the President of Wizard World USA through the Egyptian carnage. A gigantic demon with a recognisable identity lay dead, bleeding into the sands of Giza next to a demolished pyramid. Muggle crowds and authorities were swarming over the site. The Wizards went unnoticed in the throngs.

A number of leaders and representatives of various Western wizard governments had just finished a tour of the destruction zones with representatives of the wizarding communities of North Africa, the Eastern Mediterranean, and the Arabian Peninsula.

It was much worse than imagined. The muggle heads of governments and states would all have to be debriefed as to the truth of the situation (at least that which could be gleaned). This was far too big to contain with mass obliviations. And in any case, Arthur Weasley had firmly told some of the other representatives of the ICW (International Confederation of Wizards) that he would categorically refuse to support any move for mass obliviation in the ICW chambers.

Arthur had seen enough here, it was time to see to Azkaban. He nodded at Kingsley and President Russo. They all vanished with a cracking sound.

**~o0o~**

Rodolphus and Wolfgang entered the Ministry unmolested. It was in utter disarray as workers and officials scurried about frantically to deal with the fallout of the destruction of Azkaban and the largest breach of the International Statute of Secrecy since its inception in 1689. Ex-Death-Eater Lestrange still had friends in the Ministry who eased his entrance. The wizard and the sorcerer slipped into a lift and descended to the lowest levels which housed the Department of Mysteries.

**~o0o~**

Ravana came to as he was hurtling towards the Northeastern coast of Brazil. As he approached the shore the demon managed to take control of his flight. Every one of his 10 blue faces registered rage. In a fit of pique Ravana changed course to Rio De Janeiro. Shortly the peak of Mount Corcovado and the statue of The Redeemer came into view, standing 30 metres tall.

The Demon King was 5 times the size of the statue. He plummeted and crushed The Redeemer's statue into dust.

Moments later Yahweh landed nearby and the mountain trembled. The three horrified black and gold dragons followed closely behind, still unnoticed. A city full of people lay below them. This had to end now, before thousands more people were killed.

A number of Ravana's faces frowned, but the eyebrows of others lifted in surprise. Yahweh was roaring with laughter... a slightly bitter laughter.

**"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA... You fool! Do you think I give a damn about a statue of my bastard child? My grandmother stole him 2,000 years ago. And without him this statue means nothing, except as a symbol of my Dominion. HaHaHaHaHaHaHaHa..."**

While Yahweh spoke Ravana held his arms out, 10 pairs of palms facing each other. The Beast's belly glowed a bright orange and a purple spot in the center of each of his 10 foreheads shone brightly. A ball of ionic plasma instantly formed between his hands and with a roar that shook the entire mountain Ravana fired it at Yahweh who was still laughing. The Plasma Bolt hit the King of the Cloud Realm square in the chest.

Yahweh was blasted off his feet, his beard aflame. This time it was he who become a fireball careening through the upper reaches of the atmosphere. The dragons rolled their eyes and groaned. They trailed after Ravana who was soaring into the sky to keep Yahweh in sight.

The King of the Rakshasa's Kundalini Blast had been 10 times as powerful as Yahweh's lightning bolt. Ravana had used his kundalini instead of magic and had drawn up the energy of the planet into his body to create the plasma ball. So Yahweh traveled far and finally began to fall towards the Eastern Seaboard of the United States.

He was still out cold when he slammed into Washington DC and flattened the Capitol Building. The nearby Washington monument collapsed from the shock of the impact. Groaning in pain, the Giant began to groggily wake up. Fortunately, there had been very few people in the building as one of the political parties had shut down the government for the second time in 6 months.

Yahweh shook off the rubble and the remains of those who had still been in the vicinity as he stood up. He could see Ravana approaching and the Emperor of the 7 Realms felt apprehensive for the first time in his life. Ravana was easily his match. Yahweh had been fortunate that Ravana had underestimated him once.

The King of the Rakshasa wouldn't be making that mistake again. This would be a battle to the death. One of them was going to die, and Yahweh was determined that it would be Ravana.

**~o0o~**

As the dragons had streaked through the stratosphere after Ravana, they telepathically conferred with each other.

**I have an idea...** Hermione projected, **I noticed that both of the demons are actually subject to physical attacks if enough high energy plasma is used, and... and I've thought of something that might be insane, but it might be our only chance... Oh, I don't know...**

**Well spit it out Hermione!** Harry thought back impatiently. Alex chimed in too,

**Yeah Hermione... We can handle it!**

Two of the black dragons almost came up short in mid-flight but quickly recovered. Hermione's suggestion WAS insane.

But on reflection, Alex wasn't so sure. It wouldn't be the first time that she had gone into space to save the world, or leave Max on Mars. Alex didn't know that when she had performed the Transportium Nextorbitorium spell and forgotten Max on Mars, almost no wizards had the power to pull it off by themselves.

The only reason Justin had been able to flash them back to Earth was because Alex had already created the wormhole which had taken them to Mars. That had been one of the first indications to Professor Crumbs that Alex Russo had extraordinary power.


	33. Chapter 33

For Hermione's plan to work they needed to get the two demons' attention and get them to put their own battle aside temporarily. Harry realised that even as dragons, they were really too small to distract the two demons from each other. Neither demon would pay the dragons much notice while they appeared as mosquitos next to the skyscraper sized giants.

Alex's imagination quickly lit upon a solution and she beckoned the other two dragons closer to her. She turned into smoke and the others followed her lead. The three black clouds merged into one and began to reshape itself as it grew in immensity. The tendrils of cloud billowed and undulated ominously, solidifying into a single enormous black and gold dragon nearly the size of the two demons who were squaring off again in the centre of the Capitol. But the dragon seemed much larger by far as it unfurled its wings and its span blacked out the late afternoon sun across the entire National Mall.

Ravana and Yahweh looked up simultaneously, shocked by the sudden appearance of the new Monster hovering above them. The Eater of Gods noted that the Emperor of the Seven Realms was as surprised as he was and his blood ran cold.

 **"It's not one of yours then?"** Ravana asked the other confounded Demon King. Yahweh shook his head silently, his mouth agape.

 **"The Golden Triune..."** Ravana began, consternation written on most of his faces while several were still gawking at the Dragon God. **"The legends are true after all. I saw three puny dragons before I challenged you... and now... THIS!"**

Yahweh paled at the mention of The Golden Triune. That was supposed to be a children's fable. He recalled his mother Tiamat trying to frighten him into behaving with the tale when he was a child over 20,000 years ago. For the last 2,000 years, he had been trying to convince everyone and Himself that He was the Triune which would Save humankind from the Demons of the "Underworld."

He had spent several centuries slaughtering Olympians, Aesir, and the followers of the Fey--most of the Fey themselves had escaped into another realm before Yahweh had a chance to destroy them as thoroughly as he had annihilated the Olympians, the Aesir, and so many other Pantheons. By the 6th century He already controlled most of the territory from Britain to the borders of India and across North Africa.

The theft of Yahweh's son by Yahweh's grandmother hadn't stopped him from staging the First Act of his New Era with a stand-in for his son, so that he could develop his image as a Triune Deity to appeal to those who followed the Olympians, the Fey, and the Aesir.

But if Ravana was correct, he was now facing the Real Thing. The prophesied Golden Triune had become Dragon Gods... and Yahweh was just as susceptible to death as any other deity or demon engaged in combat with fellow Immortals.

**~o0o~**

Wolfgang and Rodolphus made their way to the Department of Mysteries artifact research and storage facility in the Secret 11th level of the Ministry. In the primary lab were the items they had come for. On a lab-table near a wardrobe engraved with lions was a tray of eight rings--four green, and four yellow. Rodolphus frowned and turned to the Unspeakable lab tech who was part of his underground network.

"I thought there were 16 rings, what happened to the other eight?"

"Minister Weasley," replied the tech with annoyance. "He took six of them to Hogwarts to have them examined there, and put a pair in a vault at Gringotts. I'd say he doesn't bloody trust us,"

Rodolphus smirked.

"I should think not. That man isn't a fool, unlike the last few Ministers. Well, no matter, we'll take what's left. Do you have the notes too?"

The tech waved his wand and box of files flew across the lab.

"This box contains all of the research notes of Andrew Ketterly. He was a muggle who fancied himself a bit of a wizard at the turn of the 20th century." The tech snorted with derision and Wolfgang's face darkened. The tech continued. "Still, the man was quite brilliant for a muggle. Apparently he managed to create these rings which open up portals to other realms from soil alleged to be from yet another dimension."

"Has anybody tried them yet?" Hess asked the tech.

"Not yet. We've been running a number of tests. But we think we're ready now."

"Good!" said Rodolphus, rethinking his plan a bit, "We'll just take two pair now then, and leave the other four for you to keep working on. Now what about that wardrobe you've been telling me about?"

"As best as we can tell, it's an Interdimensional Portal coded to only one realm, but we haven't worked out how to unlock it yet." The tech responded.

"Doesn't matter then, if it's only a portal to one dimension. These rings will be much more valuable." Hess told Lestrange.


	34. Chapter 34

Ravana and Yahweh both sensed it. The Dragon's magic was beyond reckoning, but it was being wielded by children--infants. They were young even by mortal standards. They had no idea how to use their newfound power--the power of the Gods.

The demons looked at each other and silently came to an agreement.

**"Mark my words Yahweh, when these children are digesting in my belly, this fight will continue. Only one of us will live to rule Earth-Realm."**

**"Agreed!"** Yahweh nodded.

The Dragon knew that they couldn't simply attack the Demons without risking thousands more lives in the busy Capitol of the United States. They were forced to use the same tactic they had used in Egypt to incite a pursuit by Ravana. Hermione had taken that into consideration as part of the plan.

Harry understood that he couldn't be as charitable as he would like. Too many lives were at stake. If what Hermione had told him was correct, these entities could cause Earthquakes, Floods, Pestilence, and Famine, turn armies into stone. They could wipe out an entire city--entire continents in a Firestorm. If he had to end these two, he would. And his two partners agreed 100 percent. But he felt he had to at least make a token effort to give the Immortals a chance to vacate Earth. Harry spoke for the Dragon God.

**"You don't belong here. If you go back to your own worlds immediately, and make a binding promise to stay away forever, I'll let you live."**

The King of the Rakshasa and the Emperor of the 7 Realms were mildly impressed by the Dragon God's bluff. But they were certain that together, killing the children would be a relatively simple task. A sly smile curled Yahweh's lips.

 **"Bold words for infants!"** he sneered. **"You will die having barely tasted life."**

The Dragon roared, shot a fireball at Yahweh's head and dive-bombed Ravana before soaring up into the reddening clouds. The Demons took flight after it. The Dragon increased its speed as it climbed higher and higher through the troposphere. It emerged from a layer of cumulonimbus clouds and ascended into the stratosphere. Moments later the Dragon was dodging geosynchronous satellites in orbit above Washington DC and stars shone in the inky blackness of space.

**~o0o~**

Emergency responders were crawling all over the Capitol and the President of the United States emerged from his bunker to assess the damage. He had been informed an hour ago of the destruction in Israel, Dubai and Egypt, and half an hour ago of the demolition of the statue of the Redeemer in Brazil. Satellites had tracked the trajectory of the gigantic entity hurtling through the farthest reaches of the atmosphere, and determined that if it didn't alter course, it would likely hit Washington DC. The president had been quickly ushered to his bunker. And now it was done.

The Director of the FBI was haranguing the President, insisting that he needed to debrief him on information which could possibly shed some light on the events. Half an hour later, Agent Hotchner found himself being escorted to the Oval Office by Secret Service agents.

He noted the damage to the White House as they made their way to the President's office. There was debris everywhere. Shattered chandeliers and fallen pieces of ceiling lay on the floor next to demolished statues, and fissures crazed the walls behind askew paintings. Staffers were scurrying to and fro, and medics were seeing to the injured. It was chaos.

The FBI agent was ushered into the Oval Office where he found the President staring out of the window through broken and missing panes.

"Leave us," said the President to his advisers and his security team. "This meeting is a highly sensitive matter of national security. I'll call you if needed."

"Sir?" said the President's Chief of Staff questioningly, "Are you certain? I really think you should reconsider..."

"No," the Commander-in-Chief said resolutely. "I have to consider this matter carefully before I can determine the correct course of action. All recording and monitoring devices to this office have been turned off and I alone must decide what to do with the FBI's information."

In truth, the President didn't want anyone else around to avoid embarrassment, in the event that what he had been told already was a hoax. He was beginning to doubt the sanity of his FBI Director.

"Agent Hotchner! The Director had some very bizarre things to tell me, but he assured me that you could prove them. Please, if you could..."

"Mr President," Agent Hotchner began, "Let me introduce you to someone..."

The President was startled when Green Fire lit up the Oval Office fireplace, and he looked on in horror as two people emerged from the flames.

"Mr President, may I introduce you to President Justin Russo of Wizard World USA, and the British Minister of Magic, Minister Arthur Weasley."


	35. Chapter 35

The black and gold dragon barely missed the Hubble telescope but seconds later it exploded as Ravana burst through it. Yahweh was right behind him. Yahweh drew his arm back and hurled a lightning bolt at the dragon. The dragon dodged it easily and flew even faster as it made for the dark side of the moon.

The Eater of Gods and the Emperor of the 7 Realms briefly lost sight of the Dragon God behind the moon, but then spotted it when it reappeared on the other side and flew directly at them. Startled, the two Demon Kings soared out of its way. The dragon belched twice and two fiery balls of plasma as bright as the sun shot directly into the paths of the demons' dispersal.

The two demons were caught off guard and both intercepted the plasma blasts before they could brake or adjust their trajectory. It took them a few precious seconds to shake off the effects of the attack, and the dragon was already hurtling towards the centre of the solar system.

Hermione and Alex watched the two demons follow Harry the Dragon towards the sun. They waited until they were all a few hundred thousand km ahead before taking up pursuit themselves. Behind the moon, the Golden Triune had split into three smaller dragons again, then used magic to make themselves appear to be the same size as the Dragon God. The demons were none the wiser.

Harry the Dragon dodged lightning bolts and kundalini blasts. He increased his velocity. He spotted Venus about a million km to his left and veered towards it. Five minutes later he dived into the Venusian atmosphere and under a thick layer of clouds.

Yahweh stopped short, but Ravana flew in after the dragon. Aphrodite was one of the few Olympians to have survived the massacre. Hermes he had captured and sent to the Fire Realm. But Aphrodite had fled Earth and taken up residence on the planet which had been given her Roman name. She was dangerous, and she had the power of an entire planet at her disposal. Yahweh decided to let Ravana stir the hornets' nest by himself. Yahweh would wait for the outcome.

Harry had no idea what Venus was like. He had only seen one documentary on the Dursley's television. And he hadn't paid enough attention in Astronomy. All he knew was that it was very very hot and uninhabitable.

So he was shocked to find that under the dense cloud cover were forests and meadows, rivers and lakes and seas. He sensed animal life and insect life, and above all he sensed magic. Harry the Dragon heard a sonic boom and knew that at least one of the other demons had followed him in.

Yahweh continued to watch the planet nervously. If Aphrodite was at home today, this could get seriously ugly. There was no question that she would join forces with the Dragon God. Yahweh began to consider his options. Then he felt a searing burst of agony and passed out.

Alex and Hermione had noticed that Yahweh didn't take the bait and follow Harry to Venus. They were puzzled, but there was nothing that could be done for it. They would just have to use Yahweh's distraction to their best advantage and improvise. The two dragons split and came at Yahweh from both sides, firing plasma bolts from their open maws.

Yahweh didn't see it coming. The plasma balls collided with him in between and flared with the force of a nuclear explosion. Wasting no time, Hermione and Alex grasped the smouldering demon and flew towards the sun, hoping that Harry would shortly be with them with Ravana in tow. They would have to deal with Ravana when they got to their final destination.

Harry would have loved to explore Venus. It looked like something out of a fairy tale. He even thought he spotted a castle in the distance. But he had a massive demon on his tail, and Hermione and Alex should be waiting by now, ready to attack it when he emerged. Harry soared back up through the cloud cover as an extremely perplexed Ravana followed.

Harry was alarmed. He was in orbit above Venus but he couldn't see Yahweh, or Alex, or Hermione. But he had no options left at this point. Ravana was right behind him. Harry would just have to follow the plan and hope for the best. Harry put on extra speed as he headed for Mercury.


	36. Chapter 36

The little space-probe orbiting Mercury took note of the most unusual event it had witnessed since settling in orbit over two years ago. In fact, it was the most unusual event witnessed in space by any piece of human space technology since the destruction of the Hubble telescope some hours ago. 

Two black and gold dragons descended to a plain near the Northern pole of Mercury, dropping an unconscious gigantic humanoid figure with a long white beard to the ground before settling themselves. One of the dragons opened its maw and a flare of plasma shot out, hitting the prone entity on Mercury’s surface. The other dragon looked questioningly at the first.

**Sorry Hermione!** Alex the Dragon projected sheepishly, **I don’t want him to wake up before Harry gets here.**

**You’re right though,** Hermione replied with a nod. **We can’t risk Yahweh waking before we take the other demon, Ravana. In fact...**

Hermione opened her own dragon-maw, and a gaseous glowing blue cloud emerged. The cloud enveloped Yahweh and solidified into crystal, encasing and trapping him.

**That won’t hold him forever,** Hermione proffered, **but it should give us time to help Harry subdue Ravana if he wakes up...**

**...And time to perform the ritual, right?** Alex questioned anxiously.

**I really don’t know. I’m sorry Alex. I’m not used to working with magic on such an immense scale. This... this is a bit beyond me,** Hermione admitted shakily. 

**These 2 particular beings have been regarded as gods-- _KINGS_ of Gods--for thousands of years. Their magic is unimaginable, and... and I suppose ours is too now. Remember when we first...** Hermione inwardly blushed, **...our first time together, I told you and Harry that the book on Alchemy claimed that a Golden Triune had 100,000 times the power of an average wizard? I think that was a vast underestimation of how much power we are dealing with... I don’t think we would have stood a chance at taking someone as powerful as Yahweh by surprise otherwise.**

**Yeah, I’m still shocked too actually,** Alex responded. **I mean, this _IS_ the dude from the Bible right? I still can’t get my head around that! My parents are Catholic... but I never really paid attention, or read the Bible...**

**I know what you mean Alex, this is all a bit much to absorb. I really don’t know what to make of it either... I _have_ read the Bible a lot--my parents are Anglican--I just never really believed any of it. Now I’m not sure what to think. Some of it seems to have some basis in fact, but it’s all muddled... I'm...**

Hermione didn’t get a chance to ponder any further. She sensed Harry the Dragon approaching at great speed followed closely by the Eater of Gods. Alex and Hermione faded into invisibility and took position, hovering over the plain.

A wave of relief flooded through Harry the Dragon when he felt Hermione and Alex touch his mind. He knew where to land on Mercury now. Harry dropped down and lit upon the plain. Ravana landed nearby sending a tremor through the ground.

Ravana was suspicious. Where was Yahweh? And why had the Dragon God--the Golden Triune--brought the Eater of Gods to Mercury? His 20 eyes scoured the surface of Mercury and Space above, seeing nothing. Was this a trick of Yahweh’s, or of the Dragon God’s? 

Ravana snarled in anger. He didn’t care. It was time to finish the children. The Dragon God seemed to know it was the end and supplicated itself before the Eater of Gods. That was the last thing Ravana saw before blacking out.

Both demons were now unconscious and encased in Hermione’s crystal cages, but there was no knowing how long they had to perform the banishing ritual. Quickly, the three dragons scorched a 13 pointed star in the surface of the plain surrounding the demons. They each uttered an incantation and the blackened lines of the star began to glow a bright orange. 

They had completed it in the nick of time. Both demons had woken and shattered the magical chrysalis Hermione had encased them in, but they couldn’t escape from the star. 

Something was wrong however. Ravana was using his kundalini to break through the shield before a wormhole to another realm opened inside it. The shield shattered and the spell broke, the orange glow fading from the star. 

A kundalini bolt slammed Harry the Dragon to the ground. Ravana was almost on top of him, but Hermione blasted Ravana off his feet before whirling to face Yahweh who was bearing down on her. Alex flew down and chomped her teeth on Yahweh’s left leg, stopping him in his tracks. The three dragons quickly regrouped and went to plan B while the two demons were trying to recover again. 

The dragons dissipated into a fine mist and spread out in a wide circle above the plain before becoming a dome of mist enclosing the demons. Through the mist the sun shone brightly. There was a little tug on the surface of the sun, and a finger of flame reached out towards Mercury. 

The two demons were ready to attack, but to attack what, they did not know. They just stared in shock and disbelief as the largest solar flare in recorded history unfurled towards them and obliterated Mercury, taking them both to their deaths.

Slowly the mist emerged from the debris of the destroyed planet, and solidified into three very exhausted looking wizards. They took a long sober look at what they had wrought, too disturbed to say anything to each other. Harry embraced Hermione and Alex, and the Triune vanished.


	37. Chapter 37

Minerva McGonagall turned the silver cross on her necklace over and over again in her palm, contemplating what had taken place the previous day. It was the middle of Summer, but she was in her office at Hogwarts, and three very worn out young wizards were recuperating in their Hogwarts’ quarters, rather than returning home to #12 Grimmauld Place. 

Most professors had home residences too, but a few--like Hagrid, Trelawny, and Slughorn--lived at Hogwarts year round. It was also a very convenient place for the Order to meet with the Golden Triune and be debriefed on the complete version of the events.

Minerva knew that she would need a new DADA professor now, and Arthur knew that a few average human Dark Wizards were hardly worth bothering Harry and his companions with. But it was doubtful that Harry, Hermione, and Alex realised it yet. No doubt, they would want to return to some semblance of a “normal life” but soon they would come understand that “normal” was no longer an option for them.

Still, she had to give Harry the opportunity to remain a professor if he wanted to. 

Minerva started from her reverie when Harry entered the Headmistress’s office. She let go of her cross and it dangled from her neck. Harry’s eyes darted to it. He wasn’t the only one trying to work things out apparently.

“Minerva, may I ask you a personal question?”

“Yes... yes of course Harry. Ask away,” Minerva replied, her brows furrowed. She had a suspicion she knew what Harry wanted to ask, and she was correct.

“You’re a Christian right?”

“Yes Harry. A Presbyterian to be precise.”

“Right then, I... I just wanted to know if that thing we destroyed was ‘God.’ I just don’t understand it. It doesn’t make any sense to me. If it was God, how could Alex and Hermione and I have killed it?”

“I... I can only conclude that Yahweh was NOT in fact God, Harry. It appears to me that the Valentinians and other Gnostics might have had the right of things after all,” Minerva replied.

“Excuse me?” Harry was puzzled. He had no idea what or who Valentinians and Gnostics were.

“I’m sorry Harry. I forget that the Dursleys never took you to Church, and that you have little religious background. Suffice it to say, they did not believe that Yahweh was the “True” God either. They saw God as being something much grander--less venal, and they believed Yahweh to be a Usurper of His power.”

“What do you believe... now I mean?” Harry asked.

“I’m not entirely sure Harry. I won’t pretend that this hasn’t shaken my Faith to the core, but I’m still a Christian. I still have Faith that God is Real, that 'he’ exists in some fashion, and that ‘he’ loves us. I just know for certain now that Yahweh wasn’t God. I had never truly believed that God would have committed many of the more... disturbing acts attributed to Yahweh in the Bible anyway. This is just going a step further for me really...”

Minerva looked at Harry apologetically. She could see that Harry wasn’t really satisfied, but she didn’t know what else to say. Harry looked perplexed a moment longer, then he gave Minerva a grateful smile when it was clear that she had nothing more to offer him.

“Thanks Minerva. I’m still stumped. But thanks for helping.”

**~o0o~**

"Hermione, do you believe in God?"

"What Harry?" Hermione looked up from the Nag Hammadi Texts at Harry, "...Oh, I don't know really. Why? Have you been thinking about it recently too?"

"Yeah, hard not to really... After what we've just been through," Harry said, "What about you Alex?"

"Oh, me?" Alex responded, “My parents are Catholic, but I really don't care one way or the other. I just know I'm never going to let any more creepy old assholes with long white beards push me around, trick me, or spy on me ever again..." Alex's mood shifted without warning and she sat right up with a scowl on her face.

"I am so OVER that shit!" she finished vehemently. Harry and Hermione both started cracking up. They all rather felt the same way. But then Alex had another thought to round it out.

"And I don't care if they call themselves God or not. After the kind of powers we've seen... we've **become?** _Really???_ "

Harry thought he rather agreed. But still, something gnawed at him.

"Yeah, I know what you mean Alex. That's sort of how I feel too. I just finished reading this..." Harry plonked a fat book on the table in front of Hermione with frustration. "And it makes no sense at all. Look, your parents are Anglican right? Help me out. You must know something..."

"I only know what my parents and other people believe and what other people wrote Harry. I don't know if God exists or not..."

"But this thing... this Demon that we fought... the one in this book. Why would anyone have ever thought he was God to begin with? He's a bloody genocidal maniac that would put Voldemort to shame... Him and his psychotic pet, Abaddon."

Hermione considered her words very carefully. She had been doing a lot of reading herself...

"If God exists Harry, it isn't in that Book..."

"...it's in us," Alex said quietly. "Mr Lovegood said it. We have the power to Create stuff out of nothing now. Doesn't that sort of make us like... Good Demons or something? I thought he said that deities and demons were both the same... because they could Create, but one was good and the other one was evil?"

"Maybe..." Hermione was noncommittal, "But whether or not God is a deity or a demon is another matter altogether. The Gnostics more or less got that demiurge bit right... that Thing we fought definitely was _NOT_ God, just a Demon with really good press and a lot of influence over the last 6,000 years. God could be something far greater than any of us could ever know. Larger than the Universe, or... wait, I know. Hang on..."

Hermione perked up and began excitedly rummaging through a number of books on the table and found one with a picture of a kind looking man on the cover who reminded Harry a bit of Mr Weasley.

"He's a muggle scientist. Or he was. He died some years ago now. But he was brilliant. Here... look..." Hermione opened the book and found the first page of the first chapter. Underneath the chapter number was a quote.

"The Cosmos is within us; we're made of Stardust. We are a way for the Cosmos to know itself." ~ Carl Sagan

Harry liked that. He didn't have to believe anything to know you were made of stardust, and he didn't have to believe anything to know that the "Cosmos" was Alive with Magic. Harry had never liked people telling him what he should believe... He just wanted to know.


	38. Epilogue

Arthur continued to fret. Rodolphus and Hess were still at large, and clearly plotting their next move. Shacklebolt was guarding the Queen now, and a squad of Aurors had been assigned to protect the Royals. Arthur had a team of Aurors looking after the Prime Minister and Parliament too, but he knew it wasn’t enough. In fact he wasn’t certain, but he was beginning to suspect that Rodolphus had already got to the current PM.

**~o0o~**

“A friend of Dumbledore’s? Well Mr...”

“Stormcrow, Mithrandir Stormcrow.” The ancient wizard with a long white beard regarded the young lady warmly with a twinkle in his eye. She was quite attractive, though much too young for him. Of course, at 4.6 billion years old, he supposed that everyone was too young for him. He sighed quietly to himself.

“Well Mr Stormcrow, I must say that I am quite surprised never to have met you until today, but Professor Dumbledore spoke quite highly of you and well regarded your council. He always looked forward to his tea on Wednesday’s with you. I think we will have a full time position opening up at Hogwarts this Autumn.”

Minerva McGonagall smiled wryly at Mithrandir.

“Welcome to Hogwarts Professor Stormcrow." 

 

**The End**

**_(...not really. Stay tuned for the sequel in which a Multiverse of adventures awaits our Golden Triune... and a Wedding ;-) )_ **


End file.
